


Adventures in Mundanities

by ThisisVenereVeritas



Category: Metalocalypse (Cartoon)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Arguing, Drabble Collection, Drinking, Happy Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, M/M, One Shot Collection, Post-Episode: s04 The Doomstar Requiem, Shopping, Smoking, Swearing, Therapy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:47:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 39,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26130646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisisVenereVeritas/pseuds/ThisisVenereVeritas
Summary: A collection of one-shots and other ideas centered around Magnus Hammersmith and Toki Wartooth. Because why not?
Relationships: Magnus Hammersmith/Toki Wartooth
Comments: 50
Kudos: 27





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toki prepares a meal for Magnus.

It began as another sarcastic remark Magnus uttered without any regard, said with the intent of drawing a reaction from the younger Toki, maybe even a humorous comment of his own before moving on to whatever his short attention span latched on to next.

“Food is for the weak,” he said, cracking a wiry grin that suggested it was taking less and less effort to produce, but he caught Toki pulling his head from the empty fridge to send a silent “you really don’t mean that” stare that immediately made Magnus regret having mentioned it. Luckily for him, that look of concern dwindled the second Magnus registered his mistake, and not much longer, he was standing in the middle of the breakfast aisle, watching Toki wave two brands of cereal in front of him.

“I likes this one because it has lotsa amounts of them marshmallows,” Toki said, shoving the box further into Magnus’ view until he had no choice but to take it into his own. 

A quick survey of the ingredients proved worrisome.

“A lot of sugar, bud,” he said, raising a curious brow while Toki reached for a box of granola bars that he tossed right into the cart.

“To helps you gains some weights,” Toki said, taking the box to cease any further inquiry. Magnus watched Toki place the cereal amongst the other boxes of prepackaged goods, bags of chips, bars, canned veggies, salsas, instant meals, bubbly drinks, bread, noodles, pasta sauces, booze and frozen meals. Nearly half of the stuff in the cart Magnus had tried excusing away. Each time, Toki pushed back and would ignore Magnus’ pleas in favor of doing whatever he thought was best.

He was getting really good at it. 

Magnus glanced down at his person, unconvinced that things were _that_ bad, but in the next moment, his eyes rested on the cart being wheeled away, and Toki happily conducting this search for sustenance for them to share, and the mixture of adulation and uncertainty forced Magnus to accept it as it were, and followed Toki. 

They finished their journey at the fresh produce section, an area Magnus already insisted they avoid. 

“It’s a waste of money,” he said, running a hand roughly through his hair as Toki pointed a finger at a pyramid of onions. “You saw my fridge. It’ll go bad.”

“Then I’ll makes it todays,” Toki announced, grabbing an onion and dunking it into the cart. 

The comment proved so distracting, Magnus didn’t even notice when Toki took his hand and yanked him away from one section, leading him to the next. “ _You cook_?” Magnus asked, only after seeing a garlic bulb being thrown into the amassing pile of food.

“Yeps,” Toki replied, freeing Magnus from his grasp to get his hands on something

Again, Magnus had trouble imagining it. Toki, cooking his own meals? Toki, eating anything that wasn’t prepared by someone else?

“ _You_ cook at Mordhaus?” Magnus asked again, watching Toki grab some potatoes and a small bag of something chopped and green. “Aren’t you supposed to have a chef that does all that for you?” 

Toki stopped to challenge Magnus’ doubt with a rather confident grin. “I likes to makes the oskasional snacks for everyones,” he said, and sounding proud of himself for mentioning it. “I’ms like, the best cooks in the groups!”

Toki, cooking for everyone? It was certainly in character. Considering all the other shocking things he learned about Toki, this was probably the nicest, if not the least life-threatening surprise yet. Convinced, Magnus backed out from another round of interrogating, and instead quietly observed Toki juggle between a few raw ingredients for some unknown meal.

Magnus took a step closer. “So, what are we–”

“You ams nots cooking,” Toki interrupted. He turned his head slightly, eyes lidded with delight. "I’ms making this meals.”

Magnus chuckled. “You’re making _me_ dinner?” he asked, voice giving into some shared enthusiasm. “Well, can’t say I’m not flattered.”

“Thanks,” Toki answered back. He maneuvered around Magnus, never quite tearing his eyes from the older man until he dumped everything into the cart. Magnus watched while Toki rested his elbows on the cart, withdrawing a bit more before adding in a softer voice, “I hopes, uhms, yous really likes it.”

Magnus had a very good feeling he’d love it.

* * *

After selecting the protein of choice, Magnus and Toki left the grocery store. The entire walk to the car was just Toki talking about how impressed Magnus would be once he tried his cooking, and Magnus trying his best not to get too excited. The ride back home lasted longer than anticipated, and by the time they reached the front door, Magnus had a difficult time hiding his interest in whatever Toki had in mind.

As soon as he put away the last can of soup, Toki pushed him out of the kitchen.

“Go does somethings.” Toki coaxed with a gentle shove. 

“I am,” Magnus said, purposely allowing some of his weight to travel further down to make it harder for Toki. “I’m watching,” he commented, feeling a rise when he saw Toki’s composure begin to shake and overfill.

“No, you can'ts do thats,” Toki said, looking away and doing a terrible job hiding his pleased, but also anxious-ridden grin. “Goes do something else, Magnus.”

As much as he enjoyed pushing the kid’s buttons, Magnus had to concede when he saw parts of Toki’s face and neck begin to glow pink. 

“Alright,” Magnus said, slowly making his way out and enjoying that Toki’s eyes were likely glued to his every move, “I’ll let you work your magic, buddy. I’ll be over here, _alone_.” 

“Okays.” Toki called out, and Magnus was sure he caught the sound of a mild giggle from the younger man, but let it slide.

Damn, the kid was getting cocky. He really got kicked out of his own kitchen, too. Politely, but still. Magnus would’ve laughed, but something warm built in his throat, and so he took to the living room, reclining into his sofa, legs and arms spread, and catching glimpses of Toki going through cabinets and drawers, and pulling out pots and pans and other random ingredients.

Meat, potatoes, veggies…all were quite familiar to Magnus, but nothing really stood out as overly distinctive. Steak aside, he could be making anything. Shoot, he could be making something Norwegian. Magnus reached for the remote, bent on following orders, but even after flicking through some channels, couldn’t bring himself to pay attention.

It was hard not being distracted. Toki was cooking. For him. It wasn’t every day someone offered to do that, much less make such a big deal of it. Toki really wanted to make him something. Toki wanted to feed him. Magnus figured after all this time spent together, this shouldn’t be a big of a deal, but then he thought about Toki’s smile, watching it go from lopsided to a perfectly bright crescent, cheeks rising and face speckled with pink, and he edged closer to the end of the sofa, trying to see what Toki was up to.

He saw a red box getting tossed into the bin. It looked like brownie mixture.

Dinner _and_ dessert? Magnus made a note that he’d really have to step things up the next time Toki came around.

A few additional minutes of hearing something being chopped, water being poured into something and stuff being tossed into the bin, Toki appeared in the living room, jumping on top of the sofa, and landing close to Magnus.

“Done already?” Magnus jokingly asked while Toki crawled up to him. “Or have you given–” 

“Shh.” Toki stopped Magnus with a kiss, effectively bringing an end to whatever Magnus had on mind. He was so caught in the moment he allowed his eyes to close and enjoy the faint taste of chocolate before Toki pulled away, smiling triumphantly at his success. 

It proved easier to stare at a screen once Toki was back. The occasional touch, the fingers running down his hair to untangle some waves, or just random banter between the two regarding the nonsense on screen, helped pull Magnus away from the aromas starting to mix and linger in the room. Not much after he noticed there was a smell, Toki scrambled back into the kitchen, again leaving Magnus to admire from afar.

The rest of the evening played out in a similar manner: Toki would pop out from the kitchen, clothes looking a little worse for wear, and would return to sofa where’d he’d land next, by or on top of Magnus and listen to the older man while he commentated over the violence happening on screen. The more intense the scene, the closer Toki got, and between his warmth and the chocolate and something salty floating in the air, Magnus needed to remind himself this was real. Then Toki would leave again, making more strange noises in the kitchen that, were it anyone else, Magnus would’ve been horrifically worried, but right now compared each sound to a note in a greater melody. 

“Almost dones,” Toki eventually called out after some time.

“Alright.”

Toki poked his head out from the kitchen, his wide grin smack dab between two thumbs-ups. 

“Go cleans ups! I’ll sets up the plates,” he said before dipping back inside. Magnus heard water running, pots and pans loudly being tossed into the sink as Toki rearranged the kitchen further. Magnus refrained a chuckle as he stood, eager to peek at the chaos ensuing just a few feet away. Hearing Toki scramble and fret over him had to be the most addicting sound ever, but he tore himself away and headed to the bathroom.

He took his time washing his hands, figuring Toki’s request had less to do with cleanliness, and more with setting a mood. He didn’t see what was going on, but heard enough to know Toki wanted to wash some dishes, maybe even swap his shirt for something cleaner. On his way back, Magnus heard a sharp sound coming from inside his room. He stopped, waited a few seconds, expecting Toki to pop and scare him, but was met with another loud _clink_. He peered inside his room, saw no one inside, but as he was about to leave heard the sound again coming from the window. He checked the blinds, lifting a few with his fingers to see if there was a source to the sounds, but was met with a pebble hitting the other side of the glass pane.

Magnus stepped back, right eye twitching as he recovered from the initial shock of the impact and sound it produced. He lifted the blinds again, this time squinting and checking the surrounding area to see who was throwing rocks in his direction. It didn’t take long for him to spot the three klokateers standing in the middle of the streets, waving their arms wildly to help garner his attention. Magnus’ initial reaction was to leave the apartment and threaten their lives for intruding, but once his eyes locked on their vapid forms, he noticed how frantic they were with their movements. The first klokateer dropped her binoculars once she realized Magnus was watching, and started gesturing to the others. What unfolded was a strange game of charades, with one klokateer pretending to mix something, then offered it to another klokateer who pretended to consume whatever it was, then rub his stomach before keeling over on his side. The third kept pointing at Magnus then, once his companion was on the ground, shifted his finger to the side, in the general direction of the living room and kitchen.

Magnus quietly pieced the information together, understanding the message, and almost wishing he hadn’t. He stepped away from the blinds, leaving his room and making another note to tell Toki his stooges were doing an awful job keeping out of sight, out of mind.

Ok, so Toki probably isn’t that good of a cook. 

But was he "keel over and die" bad?

Magnus didn’t have time to worry, because when he walked into the room, he saw the coffee table cleared of its usual ashtray, receipts, empty bottle and cans, wiped down and replaced with plates filled with decent-looking food, silverware and paper towel napkins. At the center was a zippo lighter showing off its tiny flame better than any candle Magnus had seen, and even though it was a coffee table set in his dump of an apartment, Magnus looked at it and thought it was the nicest thing he’d ever laid eyes on.

Something poked his back. Magnus turned around and saw Toki standing behind him, two opened bottles in his hands.

“Heys,” Toki said, wiggling in place. Face beaming, he handed Magnus a bottle. Magnus took it, heartbeat betraying him once his fingers met with Toki’s, and all he could think about was how this kid somehow successfully pulled off a candlelit dinner.

He caught Toki staring up at him.

“Somethings wrong?” Toki asked.

Magnus’ eyes dropped to the neck of his bottle. “This is really nice, Toki,” he answered. His heart threatened for more, but he swallowed it to meet Toki’s eyes, and smiled. “Thanks.”

Toki grinned, the tips of his ear turning pink as he took Magnus and led him to the coffee table. 

They sat on the floor to face one another. Magnus watched Toki point at the plates full of food, his beautiful blue eyes turning into pleased little squints when he finally dropped his arms and squeezed them between his shaking legs. 

Sitting crossed-legged, Magnus cast a delicate stare at his meal. The steak looked normal enough. He could tell it _wasn’t_ overdone, which meant it was at least edible. Nothing short of cutting into it would reveal how much damage there was, but chewy steak wasn’t the worst thing in the world. The mashed potatoes needed additional mashing, but Magnus couldn’t think of a way to screw up potatoes. Clumpy or not, potatoes always tasted good. Then there were the vegetables. Magnus remembered Toki putting a bag of pre-chopped vegetables in the cart, but only now noticed their sad presence on the plate. Judging by their emaciated colors, Magnus figured they’d either been boiled or steamed to the point of being tasteless. Oh well, it wasn’t like he cared much for broccoli or carrots.

“Tries its,” Toki said, sounding far less confident than before. 

“One sec,” Magnus said, inching back and observing the table, the meal and Toki at the end of the table, eyes filling with anxiety. He wanted to remember this. The table. The paper towels. The stupid lighter. Toki eyeing him and awaiting his approval.

Smiling a little, Magnus eyed the steak. Nothing worse than a ruined steak, he thought, and decided he’d tackle it first. He grabbed his knife and fork, stabbed the meat and sighed some relief when he saw the fork begin to sink, and cut it.

“Oh noes,” he heard Toki say, and when Magnus looked up, saw Toki covering his mouth and staring down at his plate with dread. “It ems not cooked all the ways.”

Magnus glanced down and saw translucent, pink fluid bleed from his steak. When he finished cutting, saw the bright red center, he finished his sigh and took a bite. Thank goodness, it was rare. Accident or not, Magnus was not going to fault a rare steak.

“S’good,” he said through a chew.

Toki was skeptical. “It ems not bads?” 

“No,” Magnus answered. He waited for Toki to lighten up, but was still met with more of the same doubt. Magnus sighed thought his nose, then grabbed his plate and stood up. Toki looked up and paled as Magnus walked around the table, sitting himself down next to Toki before snatching up his fork and roughly cutting another piece of his steak. He offered the piece to Toki. 

Toki drew back. “Whats?”

Magnus waved his fork at Toki. “Try it,” he said.

Toki leaned in and bit off the piece. He chewed slowly, face softening as he swallowed and said, “Not bads.”

Magnus smiled. “See? You did alright, dude.”

“Thanks,” Toki said, looking far more relieved. He looked at his plate, then at Magnus and, starting to wriggle again, said, “I ems askually really nervous. I nevers cooked a meals from scratch. Only snacks.”

“You don’t say?” Magnus asked, still wearing an amused smile.

Unaware of the sarcasm, Toki succumbed to a nervous giggle. “Yeah.”

This was really happening. Magnus held in a snort, finding Toki’s insecurities nothing short of brilliant. No wonder Toki didn’t want him hovering while he cooked. Cooking a meal for someone was already stressful enough, and Toki thought he would show off and cook a full meal for him, without even knowing what to do– _damn_. Suddenly all those noises in the kitchen made complete sense. That nervous smile. That smile.

As dumb as it was, it was still too much.

Magnus took Toki by the arm, yanked him close before leading him into his chest in a tight embrace. He pressed his lips into Toki’s crown, kissing it repeatedly until he heard Toki start to giggle, fight and push back to meet his lips with his own.

“This is the nicest meal anyone’s ever made me,” he said, feeling Toki cease all movement for the few seconds it took for him to take it in.

“You haven’ts even finished its,” Toki said underneath him.

“I know,” Magnus said, then let his stare rest on the table. “But it is.”

Silky smooth hair slipped from under Magnus chin as Toki freed himself from his grasp to meet him face-to-face. He expected Toki would immediately jump him, but instead the younger of the two followed after Magnus’ tired eyes, casting his own on the simple, but emotionally serene scene.

“Thanks,” Toki replied, sounding a little too humble about it, but then cracked a slight grin and added, “You reallys gonna eats it alls?”

“Hell yeah,” Magnus answered right away. “You made it.”

Toki stifled a small laugh, then started inching forward, his eyelids fluttering as he brought himself closer to Magnus. Magnus stopped Toki with a finger, pressing it firmly against his lips and watching Toki’s eye open and stare up at him in mild disbelief.

“I’ll have _that_ with my dessert,” he said.

It was something that sounded much cooler in his head, because when he said Toki snorted, blowing air into his hand and pushing Magnus away while poking fun and telling him to eat his meal. In their fumbling, the light fell on its side, clicking shut and killing its flame. They continued to laugh, picking at boiled vegetables and arguing over whether it was appropriate to toss an entire bulb of garlic into anything. Toki crammed a forkful of over-salted potatoes in his mouth, wincing through the taste while Magnus flashed his phone in his direction. When he saw Toki look his way, mouth stuffed and blue eyes overflowing with emotion, he snapped a photo.

Sweeter than anything he’d ever eaten.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toki has a nightmare. Implied post Galatikon 2.

He thought he heard whimpering, and once it registered that it was Toki, Magnus woke up. Eyes blinking, he turned, pulled himself up, and saw Toki by his side, back turned and moaning something terrible in his sleep. Magnus placed a gentle hand on Toki’s shoulder. It was hot to the touch. Magnus gave him a mild shake, hoping it would be enough, but it only made the younger man utter another whine. Magnus braced himself as he took Toki by the shoulder again, giving him another shake while also trying to get him on his back.

“Wake up,” Magnus said as calmly as he could, catching Toki’s eyelids shake as he stirred. “Wake up, Toki.”

He heard Toki suck in a sharp breath, then suddenly jerk awake. His eyes were wide, and the first thing Magnus had to do was stop Toki’s legs from kicking up and accidently hitting him. He pushed Toki down right as the younger man let out a cry, crumbling his form before frantically pushing his arms out to swat whatever he thought was attacking him.

“It’s okay, Toki,” Magnus said, voice breaking through a wild fist, catching it by the wrist and feeling it go weak under his grasp. “Calm down, buddy. Calm down, it’s just me.”

 _Or maybe it is you_ , that nasty little voice in his head warned, but Magnus pushed it aside, watching the glimmer of watery eyes reflect between his shadow and the light from the window.

“It’s just me,” Magnus repeated, voice cracking right as Toki dropped his other arm, going limp for a few seconds as he caught up with reality. Toki’s chest heaved, breath coming out staggered and weak as his frightened eyes darted about the dark bedroom, picking out familiar shapes until finally settling on Magnus above.

“M-Magnus, I–”

“Another bad dream,” Magnus finished. He lowered his forehead, reaching Toki’s and feeling how hot he was, how shaky and wet. A few fingers traced down his trembling jawline, forcing teeth to unclench. “That’s all it was,” Magnus said, “just a dream.”

A few moments passed, and Magnus was lying on his back, finger and thumb pressed into his eyes while Toki sat, cooling off and analyzing the room once more whilst wiping his face clean of any falling tears. Magnus remained in bed, counting to ten before placing a hand on Toki’s back. The cooling skin flinched underneath his touch, raising prickled goosebumps, then went soft once Toki saw who it belonged to. He snatched it up, then Magnus’ arm, before finally grabbing Magnus and selfishly taking him into his hold. Magnus let himself get scooped up while Toki buried his face into the older man’s hair, nestling deep into the nook between his shoulder blade and neck.

Magnus waited for Toki’s heart to slow more before moving.

“Was it the fire this time?” Magnus asked, trying to move as little as possible while Toki coiled around him. “Or the riots? The damn star–”

“Dyin’s,” Toki answered with a whisper.

“ _Oh_.” Magnus said, feeling himself go a little pale from personal experience. “Yeah, the dying one is a real bitch.”

Toki pushed his face into Magnus’s shoulder. “Just wants it to be overs.”

Magnus stared out, smiling sadly. “You and I both, man,” he said. “It ain’t that simple, though.”

“Them other dreams wents away.”

First the dream about the riots and fires. The collapse of Mordhaus. Magnus never thought he’d live to see the day people turned on Dethklok. Crazy that Toki got over that so much easier than him. The star was another. Magnus figured the star would hit Toki the hardest. There was a point in time where no one could look up and avoid its impending flame. That massive, burning light that functioned as both battery and doomsday weapon, etching its terrifying image into everyone’s mind as a constant reminder of the end of times.

But it was the dream of death that still haunted Toki. Though he miraculously survived the cataclysmic event, Toki still fell victim, and had to live those terrifying moments in the form of nightmares that left him hot, trembling and drenched in sweat.

When Toki asked about the dreams, Magnus told him the truth. Some dreams never go away. Magnus survived his brush with death, but he still had those few, long nights where he’d wake up rigid and in pain, one hand clenching his aching chest while the other anchored him to the bed.

“In due time, Toki,” Magnus finally said. “Gotta give yourself more time. They’ll get less frequent…start to feel more like a memory.”

Not the answer Toki wanted to hear, but the answer he needed. Toki pressed his face into Magnus’ shoulder, breathing coming to a slow. For a while, Magnus stared out, counting the seconds between each staggered breath.

Then Toki squeezed him. “Magnus?”

“Yeah, buddy?”

The blankets shifted. “Ams tired,” Toki whispered.

Magnus chuckled. “Go to sleep, dude.”

“Ams scared.” Toki confessed.

Alert, Magnus pulled Toki off from his back, earning no complaint as he flipped to his other side and now faced a pair of tired, watery-red eyes. He pushed his thumbs into Toki’s face, dragging them down the corner of his eyes and wiping away most of the tears, but finding it more difficult to get rid of fear brought on from endless nights of torment. Magnus pulled Toki closer, and was not surprised when Toki latched around his frame, face buried in his chest, just above the scar where Magnus could feel tears staining him.

“Go to sleep. I’ll be right here,” Magnus said, petting Toki’s head and earning a glimpse of two pale, blue pools holding on to every word he said. “I won’t leave you hanging.”

Toki said nothing, but blinked a few approving stares before hiding himself away in Magnus’ arms. Magnus continued petting, dropping his hand down to Toki’s back, gently repeating the same motion while Toki’s eyelids began to sink. There was a good minute or two to Toki actively fighting the exhaustion, eyes forcing themselves open and checking to see if Magnus kept his word, was still awake, and each time Toki met his weary eyes, returned to Magnus’ chest where he was lulled further into relaxation with the safe and gentle rhythm of Manus’ heartbeat.

“G’night, Toki,” Magnus whispered once he was sure Toki was asleep, and then closed his eyes and prayed to whatever remaining deities there were left in this strange universe that the poor kid be blessed with sweeter dreams.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All the little things add up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tfw you remember the rating for this series.

Magnus mentioned a change in dosage a week before their scheduled date, and made another remark about “being out of it” five days later, but neither text scared Toki away from visiting. After several months of touch and go, he mastered the art of patience and reading the room, and made a note that they might have to change the plans for that day to something far simpler and homey.

It’s late in the afternoon when Toki arrives. Magnus doesn’t answer his phone, so Toki drops everything to locate the spare keys that are in the very bottom of the over-stuffed bag he’s carrying. He stows the keys into his pocket while grabbing his things, pushing the door open with his foot. He drops his duffle bag when he hears snoring, skin unsticking itself from hefty, worn fabric, and scampers into to the living room, where he finds Magnus half-asleep on the couch.

The scene, though oddly precious upon first glimpse, does pique Toki’s interest, and as he brings himself down, his eyes wander to the coffee table situated close by, and he checks for signs of depression, of unaccounted mania long since passed, or other troubling figments that often took the form of litter, filled ashtrays and empty bottles, half-consumed food, and the rare indent in the wall. But when he checks, he sees nothing more than a few receipts and a bottle of water, and even speculates that table has been recently cleaned.

Past interactions keep him on his toes, and Toki rests on his knees, bringing a finger over to rearrange some silvery strands that obscured Magnus’ face. He tries lifting a few, watching in mild amusement when the light hits Magnus’ good eyes, causing his face to harden and stir, and for the older man to twist and raise a hand to block the light. Though he worries about the consequences, he catches Magnus’ hand in his, letting their fingers intertwine while Magnus stirs himself awake. Toki observes each knuckle, relieved there’s no fresh cuts or bruising, and pushes his lips against each one before Magnus grunts a complaint.

Magnus scowls when he opens his eyes. “What time–?”

“You okays?” Toki asks softly, _instinctually_ , figuring there must be something. The texts from before make him want to jump to conclusions, blame the pills for putting him out, but he waits for Magnus to give his side.

Magnus squints, picking out Toki’s silhouette against the blinding light, then groan. “M’tired,” he murmurs, earning a soft noise from Toki, who dips down, blocking that troublesome light, and kisses him gently on the forehead. The act lulls Magnus from whatever haze he’s in, and he extends his hands out, tracing the shape of Toki’s jawline and trying to persuade it with a ticklish drag to bring attention southward. 

“When did you get here?” Magnus half-asks, half-yawns.

“Just nows,” Toki answers. He watches Magnus stretch underneath him, spots his ribs ripping under his skin, and hears the soft pop of a few cramped joints. Toki thinks about the texts again, and he wonders if this is merely a case of Magnus’ brain restarting, readjusting to the decrease or increase of medication. He casually asks, “You needs to goes to bed?”

Magnus shakes his head at the idea, brings his hands down on the furniture to begin dragging himself up. “You just got here.”

It was a mistake to turn it into a question. Toki doesn’t give Magnus much of a choice once he’s up. “C’mons,” he says, guiding the man further, letting Magnus put some of his weight on top of him to make the travel to the bedroom easier.

Halfway into the hallways, Magnus says, “I’m not that tired, bud.”

“Then rests just an hours.”

“And what will you do?”

Toki sends him a delicate smile. “Always somethings for me to do whens you ams out.” 

The bedroom’s not as messy as Toki remembers it. There are jeans piled on a chair, a mirror resting precariously in the middle of the floor, and the small bin piled up with plastic bags, napkins and cigarettes, but the room is in greater shape than the last time Toki visited. The blinds are aligned, black tapestry lifted and allowing some light into the room, and the only aroma Toki detects are warm spices of dragon’s blood intermixed wonderfully with tobacco and Magnus’ natural scent.

Magnus picks up on this and becomes grabby. As soon as he’s sitting on the edge of the bed, he snatches Toki, resting his heavy head against the young man’s chest. There’s a tired embrace, Toki dropping his head to breathe in the clean smell of Magnus’ hair, a low sigh and a second where Toki almost contemplates joining him. A hand slips under Toki’s shirt. Cool fingertips rest on the base of his spine, then began traveling up and leaving behind desire’s strong impression, a call for intimacy before the exhaustion really begins to settle. It’s a tempting offer, one Toki is thankful he’s able decline. 

Toki frees himself from Magnus, then drops his eyes down to the man’s wrinkled jeans. It’s one thing for them to pass out drunk, still-clothed, another when rest and wellness was a priority, so Toki takes it upon himself in trying to undo the bad habit.

“Takes off your pants.”

Thinking he’s won, Magnus manages an adoring grin. “That a ‘yes’, or…?”

“Laters.” Toki dips forward, meeting with Magnus and welcoming the sharp contours of his face, the scratchiness of his stubble as their lips brushed over the other’s. Toki stops himself from getting lost, pushes Magnus deeper onto the bed. “We’ll haves more funs when you ams fully wakes.”

“Give me a minute, and I’ll show you–”

“ _Magnus_ ,” Toki playfully warns. There’s a slight smile in his eyes, but the message is clear, and Magnus sighs out some words before kicking off his pants, briefly exposing himself and throwing one last look towards Toki before reaching for the comforter.

Toki picks up the pants and tosses them inside of the closet. He reaches for other articles, not everything, just those that look a little too dingy, too over-worn and used. That’s only two pairs of pants and a single shirt, none of which are so bad that Toki minds. He searches for some clean undergarments, but the sounds of Magnus murmuring something into the pillow stops him. When Toki checks, he sees Magnus already dozing off, eyes heavily lidded, and barely able to catch up with his movement.

He returns to the bed, watching Magnus’ good eye try and fail to effectively chase after him before fluttering and coming to a slow close. There’s nothing quite like Magnus falling asleep on his own, and Toki takes a minute to admire and memorize the instant Magnus slips away, and waits an additional before attempting to readjust the covers. He lifts the top, catches a glimpse of Magnus’ bare chest and waist, and is about to pull the covers when he notices his ribcage looking far less prominent. He’s still lean, but there’s less bones standing out, and when Toki covers Magnus, sees that his shoulders are starting to round off more.

Toki refrains from petting, kissing, or any other contact that might risk disturbing Magnus, so he tip-toes out and closes the door behind him.

The first thing Toki does is slip out from his boots, taking them with him into the living room before dropping them near the door. Once it’s done, he heads to the kitchen and opens the fridge. Surprisingly no rotten food, save for some wilted vegetables tucked in the far recess of the fridge. Contents were well-stocked, and although there were still a few boxed leftovers, Toki didn’t see anything aside from a head of lettuce that desperately needed to be tossed. The rest of the kitchen further drives it home: Toki sees that the dishes are already washed and in the process of drying, only needed to be put away, and that the floor didn’t have any stains or too many scuff marks, and the trash had been taken out before his arrival.

He returns to the living room which is, upon second glance, looking better than he imagined. The floor is clean. There’s no real need to sweep or vacuum. He wonders if Magnus has been keeping the windows open, because he realizes that the air only smells a little of stale cigarettes, and that’s all. He thinks about the bedroom, turns and realizes that all windows, no matter the size, were all adjusted to let some light in. Not a whole lot, but enough. Enough to make the rooms a little brighter, more spacious and lived-in. Warm. Welcoming.

Toki double-backs to the kitchen. He stops at the fridge and doesn’t see any bills or late notices hanging on any of the magnets he bought. He walks over to the counter, sees a small pile of ripped up junk mail that needs to be tossed, but no notes, tickets, threats or other written warnings from the landlord, officer or neighbors.

The bathroom looks good, too. The shower could use a little work, but even Toki had to admit that bathroom chores suck the most. The mirror is clean, reflecting Toki back at himself without a single blemish, and the wasn’t a single sign of any mishaps: nothing sharp, no needles, or any signs of blood.

It’s all gone, Toki realizes. Or most of it. Maybe just some. Whatever the amount, Toki’s grateful, and he has to hold his breath and stop himself from getting too emotional, from making too much noise and waking Magnus up.

Toki reenters the hallway, spots the closed door, and deliberates going straight back in, taking Magnus as he was and crushing their lips together, whispering suggestive ideas while also telling him how proud he is of him, how nice everything looks, and how much he loves him, but Toki stops himself because he knows how tired and irritable those meds can make him the first few weeks, and he already made such a big deal about Magnus getting his rest. But for the first time ever, there’s nothing for him to clean up, nothing that needed fixing, no excuses or anything. No bills. Nothing broken. No servant with a list of concerns. There’s just a warm, lazy afternoon, and not nearly enough distractions to keep Toki entertained on his own for an hour, maybe longer. It’s a beautiful thing, and it also sucks balls, but Toki takes it for what it is, and he whips out his half-charged phone, drops on top of the sofa, reclining into the warm light of the sun, and starts texting.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hammertooth as told by The DethKlok Minute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea behind this was "describe their relationship through televised media." I feel like this could have been it's own story. But, you know, laziness.

There was nothing that could be done to completely vanquish the paranoia, even with the presence of half a dozen committed klokateers, so Toki knowingly made a point to always bring a disguise, to try and play it safe and drink one less bottle than normal, take one less hit than he preferred, because the last thing he wanted to do was prove Magnus’ fears correct. 

Toki was there the first time it happened. Worse, he was with the whole gang, reclining comfortably in the hot tub, finished giving Skwisgaar a high five, when Nathan flicked the television on, revealing _The Dethklok Minute_ host’s marred face.

_“Today I bring you a blast from the past. We’re talking ancient history here, folks! Famed rhythm guitarist, Toki Wartooth, was recently seen chatting it up with none other than ex-Dethklok, and failed solo artist, Magnus Hammersmith. The two were seen causing quite the scene outside of the Griffith observatory, resulting in them being kicked out from the premises. Apparently, Hammersmith couldn’t handle the extra attention. Real shame, Hammersmith, it’s as close to the stars as you’ll ever get!”_

They laughed when they saw the images, the brief video clip of Magnus angrily grabbing and tossing someone’s phone off the cliff, and the hilarious tweets shared by fans that all seemed to focus on how desperate and loathsome Magnus was in comparison to him. There was nothing he could say, whine or threaten to calm the rest of the band down. The day only grew progressively worse as he checked his phone, spotting new threads and comments on all the platforms he frequented, but not hearing a single word from Magnus.

He must have sent a dozen messages, and earned no reply until late at night, when news had reached every corner of the internet.

Thankfully, Magnus took it rather well, or as well as anyone with little to no say in the matter could. When they finally got together, Magnus was clearly upset, but he was more ashamed at himself for causing a huge scene and threatening a bunch of regular jack-offs for poking fun of him, mad for setting himself up for this disaster, and regretted that he pulled Toki and Dethklok into yet another one of his messes.

Once it was out, they discussed the next step. The public knew they were together in some form, but how much was still up in the air. Romance was currently out of the equation, or wasn’t suspected. Magnus treated it as a small relief; Toki, on the other hand, viewed it differently. The mean gossips centered on Magnus wouldn’t just go away if people continued to treat him as Toki’s inferior. If they came out not as competitors, but as partners, as equals, as a real couple…

When Toki raised the idea to Magnus, he spun it differently. They should come out now before the world figures it out on their own. Rip off the bandage on their own terms, and get the rumors done and over with.

The world was going to talk about them whether they liked it or not, so… why not try to have fun?

Why hide it and pretend they were only friends? 

_“Welcome back to the Dethklok Minute! Toki Wartooth and Hammersmith were seen together exiting Club Rhapsody on Sunset Blvd. The two barely made it five steps before Mr. Wartooth was bombarded by fans. It took several klokateers shooting down crazed fans to get their claws off Toki Wartooth. Meanwhile, here’s an image of poor ol’ Hammersmith, left out in the dust. Good thing he’s already used to it, though!”_

That time Magnus was pissed. He hadn’t even done anything that night, and was the soberer of the two. Sure, they were both piss-drunk, but Magnus had been reasonable enough to tell Toki they needed to leave once it got too crowded, and tried being civil despite the crowds, their disguises slipping off, and people flashing lights in every direction just to say they were in the same club as Toki Wartooth.

Unless given the orders, the klokateers didn’t bother trying to protect Magnus, or shoo away fans who had nothing better than to accuse him of trying to latch on to fame, being a parasite, or an unsightly thorn in Toki’s side. The burden always fell on Toki. He had to be the one to grab Magnus and reel him in, remind him to count to ten, to hold his tongue, to try and be the better man despite the rumors and open remarks.

It didn’t take long for forums to pose the much-feared question, one Toki hadn’t regarded until Magnus very frustratingly pointed it out:

_How far back do they go?_

Then Toki understood Magnus’ fears. With discussions digging deeper into their pasts, Toki knew it would only be a matter of time before rumors of his disappearance resurfaced, and people connected whatever dots they wanted to reach their preferred conclusions. 

The following months proved too challenging.

He couldn’t blame Magnus for all those close calls. Toki didn’t blame him when Magnus eventually did snap, and lash out. Magus never laid a finger on him, but the yelling…the yelling and the misdirected rage terrified him.

It was Magnus who suggested the break.

Once again, Toki couldn’t bring himself to blame Magnus, even when everyone else at Mordhaus did.

The truth stung. The loneliness ached. The rumors persisted. Toki waited and watched the news, counting the weeks until the much-needed silence finally died down. It never did. Though the conversations decreased, there was never a point in time where comments online didn’t lead to Magnus, tweets or tags that brought up the name, and the terrible rumors surrounding their relationship persisted. It was the suckiest time of Toki’s life as he waited for Magnus’ return, for the world to get over this strange obsession, and for things to return to the way it was before.

Two months later, Magnus returned from the shadows on his own accord, and begged for Toki’s forgiveness and yet another chance at proving he could handle the unwanted attention, so long as it meant keeping Toki’s. Almost immediately after they reunited, the pictures and videos returned, but this time Magnus made a point to ignore it, to do his absolute best to take it all in stride and make the most of their limited time together.

Toki welcomed Magnus with open arms, more relieved than anything that Magnus didn’t give up on the two of them, and was willing to try and make this work.

_“While on tour in England, fans caught glimpses of Toki and Mr. Hammersmith just outside of the Tower of London, harassing the local avian residents, and later caught pissing into the River Thames. Well, you know the saying: boys will be boys. In bigger news, Nathan Explosion played the lead role at The Globe’s recent…”_

Then, one day, Magnus was no longer the main story. He wasn’t the butt of the joke. He wasn’t the focus of any folly that took place between them. Now Magnus had a title. Now he was just another one of the boys. Maybe not a member of Dethklok, but someone within the circle. A person who demanded some respect. 

It took several months, but Magnus was accepted as another regular figure in Toki’s life. Like Dr. Rockso, Magnus was treated less as a person of interest, a living target, and more a colorful object that Toki took alongside him to various places, adding to the curiosity and allure of their already complex relationship. Unlike the clown, though, the well of controversy had long since run dry, and nasty statements about the older man were quickly replaced with random jokes, silly rumors about Skwisgaar being replaced, and then–

Magnus started smiling, _really_ smiling, again.

And then– 

_“Today I bring you none other than our favorite buddy-duo: Toki Wartooth and Magnus Hammersmith! The two guitarists were seen sneaking out the back of Cruachan’s, carrying a wasted William Murderface before being accosted by some rapid fangirls. Luckily for them, Murderface was there to scare them away. Hey, Murderface, didn’t anyone tell you three is a crowd?”_

It was already a big enough deal that Toki convinced Murderface to join in, drink and talk with Magnus, maybe reconcile some past grudges and start afresh. Now people were curious to know why Magnus was so well-liked. In the eyes of the fans, Dethklok was reaching out to Magnus, which meant Magnus couldn’t possibly be that bad of a guy. The focus on Magnus returned, but with a different change in tone. He was Toki’s buddy. A mentor. A reliable father figure.

Magnus read each new role, and grew paranoid for the one role that he knew would soon arise from the depths of internet forums.

Another month went by, then another, and after doing their best to avoid the media, to pay extra attention when making exchanges, their reprieve arrived in the form of funny jingles and images depicting the two of them as nothing short of the best of friends. The host of the show played it well, acting as though he never had a hand in spreading lies about them, and treated their nightly excursions, trips and secret dates as just another blurb in the _Dethklok Minute._ But as nice as two friends hanging out was, it didn’t draw the same number of crowds as before, and after waiting and waiting, the focus on the two of them finally died.

Nobody cared that Toki hung out with Magnus, and were far more invested in Pickles’ massive pub crawl across Europe, the recent paternity trials of Skwisgaar, Nathan’s up-and-down relationship with Abigail, or Murderface’s failed MLM scheme.

And then–

_“Welcome to the Dethklok minute! Uh-oh, Toki-oh! After a huge and successful performance in Japan, Toki Wartooth was seen inviting Magnus Hammersmith into the lobby of the famous Ningen Isu Hotel. But what’s this? Take a look at this! Though the picture is of poor quality, fans speculate the two are holding hands in the photo…”_

A slip up. After months of touring, bad reception and shitty planning on his part, Toki called Magnus over, and in their haste to reunite, were caught in the act.

And then…

_“Breaking news! You will not believe your eyes!”_

The very thing Magnus feared happened. Toki expected a strong reaction from Magnus. He expected the walls to crumble and the world to feel like it was ending. However, he could not predict just how negative a response he'd receive from his billions of fans. Knees tucked into his chest, Toki sullenly scrolled through the thousands of tags with awful slurs and insulting remarks, now all aimed at him. Fans demanded to know if he hit his head, if he enjoyed giving head, if he was always playing for both sides, if he spit or swallowed, if he even liked girls, if he was drunk when it happened, if it was consensual, if Toki was sure he didn’t like breasts, if he was ok, or if there was something wrong with his eyes because he could do _so_ much better than Magnus Hammersmith.

Nathan and the others warned him this would happen, but Toki never believed it. The fans loved him. He could do no wrong.

But, once it was out–

_“While most remain torn, a growing number of fans have openly voiced their support of the two…”_

Once it was out, it was Magnus who snatched the phone out from Toki’s hand, taking and stowing it in some drawer where it couldn’t bother them before doing the same with Toki, and carrying him off into the night in his arms and telling him it wasn’t worth their time.

_“…Text your vote to this number to determine the name of this new, controversial celebrity couple!”_

Much like those slow, intimate touches that kept Toki distracted long through the night, the horrible things fans said came to pass. Not much longer, Magnus showed Toki how those same fans that had attacked him, that posted videos and memes making fun of their friendship, that spread rumors and doubt, that tested their patience, were all now sending hearts and their best wishes. There were pictures, both hand drawn and professionally done, hashtags and gifs and essays filled with nothing but off-putting support. Toki found familiar faces and names, avatars and posts from those he remembered directing horrible things his way, and now they were acting as though they never stopped believing in the two.

Toki logged off and debated taking a break from social media.

Magnus beckoned him back to comforting sheets. 

The initial shock came and went, and before long, all that was left was empty support and praise. Wholesome quotes and pretty rainbow flags that meant nothing to Toki, even less to Magnus, and fan songs and imagery that Toki blocked, only to later openly mocked with the only man who understood better than anyone else how pathetic and empty-brained most people were, and how quickly everyone forgets.

The band had little to say, but offered their indirect support by reminding Toki the jack-offs were more than likely jealous. Toki had everything in the world, Nathan later said. It didn’t matter that he left it at that, abruptly ending the conversation before Toki had a chance to really take it in and appreciate the shreds of a hidden apology underneath it all. _Everything in the world._ To think it included Magnus made the half-assed apology more heartfelt, and Toki had to stop himself from getting too close to Nathan and thanking him for taking his side, for being there, for listening, caring in his own way.

And _,_ _finally_ …

_“… and in other news, the world’s favorite musical couple celebrated Toki Wartooth’s birthday in upstate New York. After celebrating at Mordhaus, Magnus and Toki decided to take advantage of the band’s extended work sabbatical, and take a vacation together. How sweet! Next week, I give you a very special Dethklok exclusive, starring none other than the famous couple themselves!”_

With an outstretched hand, Magnus reached for the remote, turning off the television with a short, but aggressive jab on the power button before snatching his keys and turning to Toki, who remained peacefully reclined on top of the hotel bed.

“Ready?” Magnus asked, fixing one of many heavy rings he had on his person as Toki slipped off the bed, hastily running past him to locate his socks and boots for the long day ahead. Magnus fingered a rather hefty skull ring adorned with gaudy, but bright and pointed gemstones. “So, who’s doing what again?”

“I holds him down,” Toki replied as he worked the laces on his boots. “When I gives the words, I jumps across and holds him down.”

Magnus picked up his sunglasses, donning his disguise before casually making his way out of the bedroom. “Uh-huh. And what’s the word?”

“Hmmm.” Toki chewed his inner lip as he searched for a random enough word. “Cinnamon?”

“ _Cinnamon_?”

“Yeps,” Toki replied, standing up and following Magnus. He grabbed a small box of medical bandages and gauze, still in a plastic bag that rested on top of a recently cracked crystal table, and shoved both into his already cluttered fanny pack. 

Magnus reached in, snatching the gauze and stowing it into one of his pockets, leaving more room for Toki to rearrange his things. “And you’re totally fine with me beating the ever-lasting shit out of him?” he asked, earning a mischievous little glance from the younger man. “All by myself?”

“Wells, I’ms gonna to gets him first,” Toki contentedly pointed out, and earned a snicker from Magnus when he dared to smile at the thought. “Ams doing half the works. Also, lets me wear some of the rings.”

“Fine, fine.” Magnus offered his fingers up to Toki, amused when the young man stopped and hovered and admired the large, heavy steel rings bought for the sole purpose of rearranging another man’s face. He raised a brown when he saw Toki reach for a devilish ring adorned with curled horns. “Not that one, I like that one.”

“Evens better.” Toki pulled the ring from Magnus’ middle, sticking out his tongue as he tried it on, along with a few others, before earning a slightly sarcastic look of approval from Magnus.

“ _Ready_?” Magnus asked again, admittedly smitten by how well the ring suited Toki.

“Waits, I forgots my hat.”

Magnus headed to the door, taking his time, stopping briefly to admire the view from the window and take in the magnificent view, while also picking up on rushed footsteps hitting the floor, Toki nearly tripping over himself and putting on the last bit of his outfit, then claiming Magnus’ free hand as his, and yanking him close into a brief, but passionate kiss. 

“Let’s go,” he said after slowly pulling away, eyes locked on Magnus as he opened the door, ready to be led into the light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm debating if I should do a whole date as told by klokateers. Idk.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing is perfect. Certainly not these two. 
> 
> Alternatively, Toki gets too drunk and says something he can’t take back.

At six in the evening, after learning that Dr. Rockso had been arrested for allegation not unrelated to his prior convictions involving a younger fanbase, Toki arrived at Magnus’ front door, already buzzed and leaning precariously against the railing, top-half hanging so far back Magnus didn’t even notice the tight skinny jeans and button-up top until he yanked the fool from the second-floor walkway and into his apartment.

Taking a hint from Toki’s outfit, Magnus returned to his room, searching deep within the pits of his limited wardrobe for something nice to wear, figuring Toki had greater plans than the usual “get drunk at X-location and make out” scene they were accustomed to, but was stopped multiple times by eager fingers tugging the seam of his pants, touching and playing with his hair, and some mouth-watering, suggestive whispers. Yet it was also Toki who complained when things didn’t move too fast, and whined when he didn’t get his way into Magnus’ pants quite as easily as he hoped, but buzzed as he was, still carried that childish demeanor and outgoing spirit that left Magnus feeling a bit too forgiving. It was a massive red flag, but Magnus was so accustomed to seeing that color, mostly through his own violent devices, that he took Toki’s sloppy advances and openly perverse nature as endearing, and lead the two of them to the car, to wherever Toki desired.

The restaurant was nice. It certainly helped that half of it was closed to the public to account for their impending reservation. Magnus recounted the waitress’ relieved expression once she learned Toki had dragged him along instead of Rockso, and wondered what sort of things little Toki did in the dark of the night, when the gears were all in place to erase any evidence. Nevertheless, dinner was nice, but it wasn’t without its copious amounts of alcohol. Magnus considered himself a successful alcoholic, but after his third glass of wine, became increasingly aware of just how much Toki could consume without passing out.

“Think you’ve had enough, buddy?” Magnus joked right as Toki picked up the bill, both eyes squinting at different intervals as he tried making sense of the amount, only to shrug it off, place his card on it, and demand another bottle of port.

“Nahhhh.” Toki brushed Magnus’ question with a dry giggle before hiccuping, looking away to find a waitress or waiter. “S’goods.”

“You sure?” Magnus asked, taking note of how rosy-faced Toki had become since the start of their meal. He was all for getting wasted, but the sight of those buttons gave Magnus something to envision, something to undo one step at a time.

It would be a damn shame if Toki was too drunk to let that happen.

“Ohhh, looks at thats,” Toki loudly proclaimed, pointing to a couple being guided to their table, just outside the closed-off area. “She ams wearing tights slutty shorts-shorts. Your favorites, Magnus.”

And then it was time to leave.

But when Magnus suggested they go home, put on something in the background and go at each other like it was going out of style, Toki complained some more, taking Magnus by the arm and calling him such sweet things that Magnus decided he’d agree to fulfilling his role as drinking buddy for the night, and allowed Toki to lead him to their next destination.

Since he refused the services of the klokateers, Magnus did the driving, which meant he needed to stop if he wanted to get Toki back to his place in one piece. It was a duty that turned out much easier said than done, because the second Toki leapt out of the car, taking Magnus by the hand and escorting him past the long lines, right up to the bouncer and straight into the club, the first thing that came from the younger man was “we should gets something to drinks!”

“I thought you said you wanted to dance?” Magnus had to yell once he noticed Toki eyeing the bar, tugging the bottom of Magnus’ top, bottom lip pouting and large blue eyes aimed directly at him once Magnus dared to set his eyes on the younger man.

“I do, _with yous_ ,” Toki said, slurring his words a little as he pressed his weight on Magnus, face heated and pink, and lips parted just enough where Magnus could smell the booze, but see the flicker of a tongue, and feel the heat of Toki’s exhale. “Buuuuuuuuuuuut–”

Toki insisted on a fruity, mixed drink Dr. Rockso ordered for the two of them, “all the times.”

Magnus accepted the offer, but only because he assumed this was it. The last drink. Toki wanted to dance, and dragged him to a club that only played the same repetitive, garbage beat, and Magnus was willing to take quite a bit from Toki, but wouldn’t bring himself to make a damn fool of himself at a stupid club full of twenty and thirty-something-year-old jackasses.

Three very alcoholic mixed drinks later, and Toki was piss-drunk. Magnus witnessed it happening, but with the neon light swaying above, the white flashes dancing and blinding his good eye, and Toki–Toki never letting him go, rubbing his front against Magnus’ back, and his drink hands and breath brushing and finding themselves everywhere–made trying to keep track of time near impossible, much less what Toki was consuming within it.

It was well past midnight when Magnus found himself against a wall in the restroom, Toki having pushed him there, and whispering absolute nonsense into his neck. Toki’s hat slipped off ages ago, and it was only a matter of time before people recognized the drunk who still hadn’t tucked himself back in after pissing and missing the damn urinal as Dethklok’s rhythm guitarist. What made it more nerve-wrecking was how strong the damn kid was; Magnus had tasted Toki’s strength on some occasions, even pondered just how strong the guy was once he was back in shape and raring to go, but only really understood just how well Toki refrained from using his strength once he had Magnus backed into a literal, piss-stained corner. In any given circumstance, Magnus would have found it an attractive feature.

In the men’s room, however…

Through heavy pants and complaints, Toki muttered, “wants to go homes.”

Words like magic. Magnus stared at the man’s lidded eyes, bags forming under each one from a long night of drinking and dancing. Just then, Toki moved forward, pushing his dry lips against Magnus’, or at least tried. He missed by an inch or so, kissing half of his mouth, half his cheek, and pulled back only to complain about the taste of salt, and the nausea it caused him. He saw Toki take a step back, mouth covered by a heavy hand and pulling his lips inward to form a weak barrier as he fought to control the building tension in his stomach.

Magnus realized the poor kid was beyond the point of no return, and said, calmly, “Toki, let’s go.”

They made it as far as the front doors before Toki darted to the nearest potted plant and, keeling forward, vomited into it. Several people waiting in line pointed their fingers, erupted in laughter as Toki held on to the frame, coughing up the remains of his meal, a bottle-and-a-half of wine, several mixed drinks, and whatever else he took before arriving. Magnus stood, watching from a distance, unsure if he should be embarrassed for being caught with Toki, or relieved that it wasn’t him this time being the center of all this negative attention.

“Alright, buddy,” Magnus said, trying to make the best of an absolutely shitty situation, “let’s go. I got a toilet with your name on it.”

He patted the man’s back, expecting Toki to turn, latch on to him and beg for the quickest ride home.

Instead, Toki jolted, breaking away from Magnus, and proclaiming, “You ams no fun.”

“What?”

Toki stuck a tongue at him, swatting away all attempts by Magnus to reel him in, then walked off. Or, at least he tried. Toki made it six steps before going lopsided, swaying and struggling to make each move, before ultimately encountering a ficus planted near the street, walking straight into it and swearing out in pain as people continued to jeer and cheer him on.

Now Magnus was embarrassed. He’d been drunk before. He’d been piss-drunk, black-out drunk, angry and sad drunk. Each time, he made a mess. Most of the time, he didn’t have to worry about remembering it. This was the first time he’d been sober enough to be on the receiving end of it. He did not like it. Not one bit.

He hurried over while Toki pressed a hand on the tree’s trunk, face turning pale as a second bout of nausea overtook him. His head dropped forward, and Magnus raced as quickly as he could to grab as much hair as he could to save it all from being ruined.

He got most of it.

Toki groaned out a weak “thanks,” then stood up, face less severe than before, but still pale and wretched compared to what Magnus admired just hours ago.

“We need to go, _now_ ,” Magnus said, lacking the gentility from before. “People are watching.”

Toki’s face soured. “Them regular jack-offs?” he asked, slurred voice laced with something different. It was mean. Nasty. “I thoughts you didn’ts care.”

“Toki,” Magnus warned. He could feel his chest tighten. The very skin around his scar tensed as he fought and refrained from trying to yell over Toki.

“Holy shit, is that Toki Wartooth?”

“Dude, I think it is.”

“Fuck, hurry and get a picture.”

It took a few seconds for Magnus to register the flashing lights on his left, and when he turned, saw several people raising their phones, trying to capture an image of Toki at his worst. He felt some wind hit his face, and when he looked back, saw Toki waving at the crowd, flashing a wide grin, then dropping all fingers save for his middle and earning quite the reaction from the crowd.

“ _Toki_ ,” Magnus said, feeling the anger start to build.

“Fuck offs!” Toki said, though it was hard to tell whom the remark was directed at. Whatever the case, it sparked another series of bright lights flashing and sending the two aglow, which only made Toki react all the more. He backed into the tree, stepping into his vomit, and said several more loud swears at the crowd before turning his back on them. He made a jump for the lowest branch, and Magnus watched in absolute horror as Toki succeeded at his second attempt, grabbing the base of the branch and pulling himself up with his arms. People were now leaving the line, deciding whatever antic Toki was about to engage in was far more productive and worth their time. Magnus stood, frigid and repeatedly telling himself there were better ways to communicate, that there was a means out of this that he had to reason with Toki, maybe make an offering, a promise, or–

Toki made a move up the branch, but slipped, and were it not for the material of his jeans gripping tightly to the base of the branch, might have slipped and hit his head.

Magnus sucked in a sharp breath, feeling every muscle tense as he jerked forward, ready to grab the man in case he fell, and he panicked, wondering where the fuck the klokateers were when he needed them.

Magnus looked up the tree, finding Toki on his stomach, staring absentmindedly at him. “Toki, I swear to god,” Magnus said, watching those blue eyes go wide once he heard the deepening growl in his voice. “If you don’t get out of that tree right now, I’ll–”

“ _What_?” Toki barked back, mocking Magnus with a voice of his own. “Hits me? Kicks me in the stomach likes before?”

Magnus immediately shut up, withdrawing when he heard Toki break into a fit of hysteric.

“Magnus doesn’t likes it!” Toki teased, causing a series of flashed once directed at him to suddenly turn on Magnus. “Whats you gonna do? Spits on Toki? Tells me I’m nothings? Been theres, done thats.”

That last one really got the crowd going. Magnus didn’t know if they were putting two-and-two together, or they merely registered this as just another lovers’ quarrel, but the will to fight was gone, drained once Magnus felt the flashing heat of his face get consumed with the flashes of the cameras, and if he wasn’t seen white, he was seeing all the terrible things he desperately wanted to get past, but couldn’t. Toki knew he couldn’t, and now he was fucking with him in the worst way imaginable, and there wasn’t a damn thing Magnus could do about it. People were all over them now, recording their every move, every word.

A phone was pushed up and close, right into his face, and Magnus swatted at it with enough force that it fell. Someone swore at him, and another successfully identified and called out his name. After that, it was over. Magnus summoned the remaining strength he had and pushed his way through the growing crowds, figuring at some point a servant would arrive and save Toki from his own stupidity.

“Magnus, where’s you goin?” he heard Toki whine out, voice breaking through the fans screaming and vying for his attention. “Magnus? _Mangus_ , it was ams jokes! Magnuuus–”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping, Part 1.

He passed by the curious store on multiple occasions, but only decided to stop and take a glimpse inside once he saw the planes and colorful action figures hanging from the ceiling. Magnus recalls Toki mentioning something about model planes, spending hours sitting over a magnifying glass, painstakingly piecing together each gray puzzle piece until he was left with a fighter plane, a carrier, a jet. Magnus doesn’t know anything beyond that, and spends some ten minutes wandering the store, picking up boxes of Japanese fighting robots that needed assembling, model ships and tanks from previous world wars, and eventually settles on the several fighter jets and air crafts that kinda look cool.

The price is nothing to gawk at. Magnus doesn’t understand why anyone would spend so much on a toy that required several hours to assemble, glue and dry. At least the model he has in his hands isn’t demanding he buy paint for it. He second-guesses himself at the register though, and returns to the back of the store, comparing various models once more before concluding he’d made the right choice.

On his way to the front, he picks up a neat looking robot, and adds it to the pile.

He gets buyer's remorse two hours later. Magnus returns home, scowling at his purchases, at the stupidity behind it all.

Why the fuck did he spend so much on a bunch of model that, for all he knew, Toki already possessed? In hindsight, he really should have asked the guy if he needed any fighter jets to begin with. He could have asked if Toki had a thing for giant Asian robots.

He hangs the thin shopping bag with the jackets and coats, and tries to forget about it, but every time he leaves the apartment, gets a text from Toki, or occupies the same space as the bag, second guesses his purchase, and wonders if he should return the models for something else. A day before Toki arrives, Magnus reaches in and pulls out the box with the robot in it. The box says “Fighting Mecha Unit-01,” and the figure posed underneath looks good, but the longer he stares, the more he notices how weird it is that the robot has such a long, phallic-like horn, that it's purple and green, that there is something _definitely_ weird going on with the shoulders, and he decides that the toy is too stupid to give to Toki.

_Look at it. What the fuck kind of robot is it supposed to be anyways? It barely even looks like a robot; it looks more like an alien than a robot. It’s also feminine. Is that right? It’s the purple, isn’t it? It’s too girly looking–should’ve grabbed a boxier looking robot. Fuck, it’s so stupid. It is stupid. It couldn’t get any more stupid, not even if–_

“What ams this?”

He forgets to stow the bag in the closet. Toki hangs his coat, spots the bag and picks it up, thinking its trash ( _it is_ ), and was about to cast it out and let it rest outside, besides the door, when he notices one of the boxes, and takes a second look.

 _Shit_. _Way to fucking go, Magnus._

“Just some stuff,” Magnus answers stiffly. He’s doing a terrible job at controlling his deepening anxiety, and it gets worse when he sees Toki pull out the model plane. “You mentioned something about models, right?”

“This ams–”

 _He already has it_ , Magnus thinks as he forces a thin smile. _He already has it, or he doesn’t like it because it’s not from the right company. You already checked online and saw better models for the stupid alien-mecha, right? Oh my god, he’s picking up the other box. He’s staring at it. Why is he looking at it that way?_

“I left the receipt in there, in case you don’t want them,” Magnus says right as Toki lifts his head up, turning and looking at Magnus with lips pulled inward.

_Why is he looking at me? What did I do wrong? Was it the robot? The plane? Both._

_Why didn’t I just bring him to the store? Why did I think surprising him was a good idea?_

_He’s coming over._

“Magnus, thanks you.” The embrace is much appreciated, and the second Magnus feels the younger man’s arms wrap around him, the shopping bag poking his back as it bounced against him, Toki getting on his toes and telling him how excited he is, that he’ll get to piecing them together once he’s done with his B-52 bomber, and he’ll send picture and progress updates, he calms down. His head stops spinning. The voice in his head quivers and shakes and tears at itself apart for having made it this far, only to be snuffed with a “thank you,” an embrace, and smile.

_He likes it?_

_He likes it_.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping, Part 2.

Magnus’ belt strap had long since reached the point where the buckle was doing more harm than good, but he didn’t think it was such a big deal, not when he was gaining weight anyways and had plenty of other, unused holes that could handle the additional stress. He figured a few more wears wouldn’t hurt, but when he tried putting it on felt the strap near the center bend a little too much, and begin to tear.

After a series of petty swears and an attempt to find an easy fix, Magnus pulled out his phone, checking his savings for the rest of the month, and decided he’d splurge a little on some new clothes. His boots were worn as it were, leaving his arches aching after a long day, and it was getting colder.

There were a few thrift shops not too far from where he lived. Since wasting money on gas wasn’t an option this late in the month, Magnus opted for the bus. About an hour later, right as Magnus reached his stop and checked his phone to see how much farther he’d have to go on foot, Toki texted him, informing him that he’d arrive earlier than expected. After a series of messages, Magnus let Toki know where he was headed, and left it at that.

Luckily for him the first shop wasn’t a total bust, and he found something decent enough to replace the belt he had dumped. Shoes were a no-go. There were a few warmer looking tops available, but nothing that really spoke to him. Magnus left the store with his single purchase, somewhat thankful he only spent a few dollars and not a cent more, and he waited by the curbside for Toki and his gruesome chariot to arrive.

A chilly breeze swept across the dreary shopping center. Magnus shivered, then pulled out a cigarette to nurse and warm his spirits. Twenty minutes later, Toki arrived, popping out of the door before his servant could open it for him. He raced across the street, meeting Magnus in a tight embrace.

“Hey, I’m heres.” Toki squeezed the older man, feeling a slight shiver vibrate against his chest when his arms wrapped around Magnus’ waist. “You gots clothes?”

“Just a belt,” Magnus replied, patting Toki lightly on the head, making him stir underneath and peer upwards, eyes locked on his face.

“Oh, that’s all?”

“Well, this place doesn’t really have a wide option,” Magnus said, shrugging as Toki peeled himself off from him, opening Magnus up to that uncomfortable chill. He made sure not to let it show, and continued after Toki as he led them back inside of the limo. “I really should’ve gone downtown. They’ve got better thrift stores.”

“Wants to go?” Toki asked as he knelt inwards.

Magnus shook his head. Toki, at a thrift store? Did Toki even know what a thrift shop was?

“Nah,” Magnus answered, grinning slightly as Toki nestled close, arm reaching over and turning up the heat to quell the remaining tremble that still haunted Magnus. “Let’s get you a meal first, and we’ll check out your–”

“Lets go. I likes shopping anyways. Always nice to go outs and buys the toy models and the gifts for my friends.” The way Toki said it made it sound like it was a damn treat. He inched closer to Magnus, nestling close and making that damn pout that tugged at the heartstrings.

“Alright,” Magnus said, unwilling to challenge the two, wide blue eyes that were set upon him, reflecting his image back at him and exposing just how weak they could make a man. “I needed to get some stuff for later anyways–”

“Oh, wowee!” Toki chirped, raising himself up and nuzzling Magnus’ cheek with his nose. “We’s going on a shopping sprees!” Toki turned his head and yelled out to the front of the limo: “Heys, we’s going shoppings now! Takes us somewhere nice!”

“Yes, sir,” came an unknown voice.

Toki returned to Magnus, hand already sliding up his leg as he leaned in for a kiss. As good as it felt, Magnus gently removed Toki off from him.

“You do realize we’re thrifting, right?” Magnus said, voice tensing at the mere thought of spending more than what he currently possessed in his wallet.

“Thriftins,” Toki said. “Ams when you buy clothes at poor peoples or stupid hipsters stores, rights?”

Magnus told himself not to get offended. It wasn’t Toki’s fault he stopped growing up the second he became famous. “For lack of a better definition, _sure_ ,” he replied, expecting Toki to say something smart, maybe even toss a nasty line about how he never had to worry about such a thing.

His sarcasm was met with a toothy, nonjudgmental grin.

“Oh, okays,” Toki said, then turned again, and yelled out, “Goes to not so fancy places for shoppings!”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Betters?” Toki asked Magnus, who in turn, sank a little in his seat, letting his legs spread some and embracing the heated air splashing across right when Toki peered up again, waiting for permission to continue where they left off.

The engine roared alive. Toki dropped on top of Magnus right as the limo entered the street, falling on top his legs and giggling at the shock, flipping himself over and bringing his hands up to Magnus, gesturing him to join and rest beside him.

Without giving his answer, Magnus merely stared down, flashing a suggestive grin and letting Toki grab him by the bottom of his shirt and pull him down.

* * *

It became abundantly clear that what Toki counted as frugal or cheap did not match Magnus’ definition. Magnus didn’t pay much attention to their changing surroundings; how could he, when he was too busy getting reacquainted with Toki after nearly a month of separation? When the limo finally parked, and Magnus stepped out and viewed the massive, layered shopping center full of designer stores and upscale restaurants, his heart sank.

Out of politeness, Magnus held his tongue. Toki wanted nothing more than to lead and with so many distractions surrounding them, Magnus couldn’t bring himself to shut the kid down. He formulated a plan: window shop and politely disregard anything Toki offered up, or convince Toki to focus more on himself, rather than him and whatever he was in search of.

This proved a difficult challenge. Toki stopped at whatever store caught his fancy, yanked Magnus inward, and went through various articles of clothing that he certainly didn’t need, much less Magnus. It wasn’t too annoying at first: the first two stores Toki spent most of his money on things he liked or wanted, but always picking up something and offering it Magnus’ way, asking if he’d consider trying it on, or if he preferred one color over the other. It was easy to suggest a color, only to reject an outfit for something as simple as it being the wrong design, wrong fit, or just not “my thing.” That said, if there was any silver lining, it was Toki’s impeccable taste in clothing. Toki’s first few suggestions were questionable, but by the second store, was pulling things from racks that made Magnus turn, curious to know what special occasion Toki was saving said outfit for. 

It wasn’t until the fourth store when Toki started to slow down, and Magnus began to really dread the afternoon. Again, Toki inquired about colors, designs, whether Skwisgaar might like something in silver instead of white, or whether Magnus thought there was a difference between “midnight sonata” and “desert night” as far as black goes. With little else left to do, he ended up picking out various clothing; a nice pair of pants, a ring, a black coat, and tested the fabric and admiring the designs, only to check the tag and be reminded just how out-of-touch Toki was with the real world.

“Whats do you thinks of this?” Toki asked, raising a lovely button down shirt in front of Magnus.

“Uhm.” Magnus eyed the slim fitting top, and imagined what Toki might look like in it, how snug and form-fitting it would be, and smirked. “Real nice, man. For you?”

“No, yous.”

“Oh, _well_.” Magnus feigned disinterest. By the point, there was no need to glance at the price. He already knew it was well beyond what he could afford, at least if he wanted to eat next week. “Not really my color, dude.”

“You sures?” Toki asked, edging the top a little bit closer in Magnus’ view. “Ams maroon.”

“Yeah,” Magnus said with a bored shrug. As Toki put the top away, Magnus glanced at the remaining portions of the store they hadn’t perused through yet, sighing inwardly at the thought of having to deal with this for another ten minutes. “Y’know,” he said aloud, “I think I’ll look over that way. You go ahead and do your thing.”

Toki beamed at him. “Cool. _Oh,_ takes one of the gears with yous to holds on to your clothes.”

“Sure, whatever,” Magnus said, more than willing to accept some silent no-name shadowing him if it meant escaping this hell of refusing every single article of clothing Toki tossed his way.

He isolated himself in the far reaches of the store, away from Toki’s immediate line of sight, and once he was sure he was safe, groaned. He picked up a pair of faded black jeans, fondled through it until he located the price tag, and took one quick glance before shoving it back with the rest.

Who in their right mind would spend over a hundred dollars on a pair of pre-faded jeans?

“Need any help?” The klokateer asked.

“ _No_ ,” Magnus growled, uncaring when she huffed a complaint before stepping away from him. 

Shoving his hands deep into his pockets, Magnus grumbled a sound, bottom lip curling as his eyes rested on another pair of slick looking, dark gray jeans.

He wouldn’t admit it, but if he had the money, he’d waste it all. As much as he wanted to be jealous of Toki, Magnus knew if he had the wealth to wear it, he’d buy it all up. The fact that all of this meant nothing to Toki, because he was a successful billionaire, and spending eighty on a button down was just a drop in the bucket that represented his overall wealth, was something to be envious of. How could he hate Toki for doing what came natural?

Something poked his back. Magnus turned, spotting Toki standing before him, carrying a few bags. “Hey,” he said. “Finds anything?”

“Just window shopping,” Magnus answered, smiling warmly at Toki.

“Heys, I’ll be rights back,” he said, then raised the small bag up to Magnus. “Cans you look afters?”

Magnus took the bag. “Where are you headed?” 

“Back to Manson’s,” Toki replied.

“The one with the coat, right?” Magnus inquired, remembering and idolizing the make and heftiness before immediately recoiling in fright once he realized it was worth two whole paychecks.

“Yeah, forgots something,” Toki answered, then snapped a finger at the remaining klokateer to follow him.

“I’ll be waiting,” Magnus said, gesturing to one of the benches just outside the store.

They parted ways the moment they exited the store, and although it was getting chilly, Magnus settled on the bench, legs spread and consuming as much space as he could while he waited for Toki’s return. By now his feet were starting to ache, and it was getting late enough that he couldn’t ignore the occasional hunger pang for much longer, but when Magnus made a quick glance at the available restaurants, even checked his phone to see what his options were, was dissuaded when he didn’t recognize the names of anything close buy, or saw multiple dollar signs left by reviewers.

Magnus fished out his wallet. There was enough for a decent meal; not anything around here, but something equally fulfilling, if not better in flavor, closer to where he lived.

Maybe he could convince Toki to get a pizza? Toki loved anything topped with extra, melted cheese.

A few minutes passed. Magnus lifted his head to the rolling clouds above, making a note that he’d really need to get his hands on some heavier clothing soon. More time passed, and Magnus closed his legs, brought his arms closer to his chest to collect whatever heat his scrawny form could naturally produce. A frigid wind swept behind him, causing him to shudder and hunch forward, protective of his sensitive scar that would always throb and pang whenever it got too cold.

“You alrights?”

Magnus looked up, comforted when he saw Toki’s concerned stare. “Yeah, just a chill,” he said, and picked himself up, but not before taking the bag he’d been assigned to look after, and offered it to one of the available klokateer. “Hey man,” Magnus added, catching Toki’s arm in his, “I don’t know about you, but I could really use a bite. How’s pizza sound? I’m buying, _of course_.”

“Sounds greats,” Toki answered. “C’mon, let’s go.”

He’s relieved to hear it. He was also weirdly happy that Toki improved his wardrobe, even if it meant an afternoon of just standing and window shopping. Shit, almost like a real couple.

Magnus remained huddled close to Toki on their way back to the limo, partly to show affection and maybe milk another fun ride back to the pizzeria, and because his front scar still stung, and the one on his back wasn’t faring much better. 

The klokateers ran up ahead, one lifting the trunk to store the remaining bags, while another rushed to open the car door for the two of them. Eager to get away from the cold, Magnus slipped inside first, edging his way deeper, only to be met with some filled shopping bags from the various designer stores he and Toki visited before. He picks them up, throwing them to the other side of the limo so Toki can sit beside him.

“Your stooges left some bags in there,” Magnus mentioned, reaching for the heater in anticipation.

“Ams supposed to be there,” Toki calmly stated, dropping the large shopping bag between his legs, then waited for the door to shut before tacking on, “They ams your clothes.”

Magnus froze. “What?” he asked, hoping he misheard Toki.

“ _Your_ clothes,” Toki repeated, dropping the high pitch for his lower, more natural voice. Hearing it sent a warm chill Magnus spine. “Everythings you looks at for a long times when we went shoppins.”

Magnus glanced at the cluttered shopping bags he’d been so quick to throw, disregarded because as far as he knew, they were for Murderface or Nathan, or some other unlucky, _unworthy_ fool that Toki insisted on befriending and caring for. The engine started, and once the limo started to move, one of the stiffer bags toppled over, and Magnus could see the outlines of something dark resting within.

Magnus started shaking his head. Keeping a straight face, he started: “Toki, I–”

“Kept my mouths shut so you wouldn’ts come ups with more excuses,” Toki interrupted, unwavering and ignoring the threatening look starting to surface across Magnus’ already strained expression.

Toki picked up the large bag he had resting between his legs and offered it to Magnus, who wanted nothing more than to throw it out the window, but accepted because Toki kept staring and refused to look away from him. Magnus saw the brand name spread on the shopping bag, and already had a feeling he knew what was inside, but Toki wouldn’t let him escape, so with a trembling hand he reached in and pulled out the black coat he’d secretly been vying for, now his.

Magnus lifted the rest of the coat, letting the bag slip as he pulled it up, letting it all topple over and rest on his stiff, shivering knees. He tried furrowing his brows, tried getting his lips to turn southward, but all he managed was a staggered inhale. 

There was an insurmountable desire to flee the scene.

Besides him, Toki continued: “You lookst really colds when I picked you ups. And you were really colds when I founds you at the bench, so you cant says no to Toki.”

How _dare_ Toki make it sound so easy, like buying clothes for someone who clearly didn’t deserve it was just another everyday occurrence. Like it wasn’t a big deal. 

It _wasn’t_ a big deal, Magnus thought, and tried sticking to the words, but when he tried tearing his eyes from the coat to try and force a smile on his face, tell Toki “thank you,” or just look him in the eyes like a goddamn man, he couldn’t.

Tell him this is the nicest thing anyone has done, he thought, but couldn’t.

Tell him a joke, but couldn’t think of anything to say. 

Tell him you don’t deserve this, but already knew Toki would try and stop him. 

Tell him something.

Throat tightening, Magnus blinked, and brought a hand to cover his mouth. 

There was something he desperately wanted to say, but couldn’t. He could feel those three terrifying words swirling in his chest, perfectly formulated and merely waiting for his permission to leave, fill the air and Toki’s heart with promises of a brighter future.

The back of his right eye burned, and when Magnus blinked, hoping that he could obscure that overwhelming sensation that was so close to choking him, felt something wet roll down his left cheek, catching him off guard and triggering a series of actions Magnus couldn’t control. He hunched forward, taking the coat with him, and covered the rest of his face with it and his second hand. He shut his eyes, holding his breath for as long as he could to hide away the tears, the ugly face he was forming as he fought to control himself.

“Needs a minutes?” he heard Toki ask, voice transitioning to its usual pitch, and lacking that strength from before. It was softer, gentler. Hurt, but ultimately accepting of what was happening.

It was Toki back to being Toki.

Face still buried in the coat, Magnus managed a short nod. “Mhmm.”

“Okays.” Toki hand patted the cushion underneath. Magnus heard each tap, finding the closeness of the sounds intimidating, but accepting it as a reminder that Toki wanted to touch him, comfort him, but wouldn’t. Not like this. “You has one minute, but after that, I can hugs you and makes you put on the coat, rights?”

“Mhmm.”

“Not gonna says anything means about how you looks, okay?” Toki gently warned, hovering a little close to ensure the older man could hear him over the occasional sniffling and airy breath.

Magnus opened his eyes. He stared through the thin gaps between his fingers, vision in both yes almost equally blurred from the pressure and tears he couldn’t hold back. “Mhmm.”

“Magnus?” Toki’s voice hung over him like a guillotine, ready to sever whatever limited connection and control he had over himself. “I loves you.”

Magnus exhaled, and every thought and feeling under the damn sun threatened to pour out, but somehow Magnus held it all in, just long enough to drop everything and grab Toki, bury his face in the man’s stomach and begin counting down how much longer he had to grow a spine and say what was on his mind. 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meanwhile, at the Tower of London...
> 
> From a prompt request on Tumblr. Very minor edits done to clean up some parts.

Toki does his best to look through the gated window, peering down the massive tower where he spots several tourists lacking umbrellas wandering the avian filled garden, taking pictures of Yeomen guards standing straight-faced despite the declining weather.

There’s someone standing at the base of the tower, right underneath Toki. A poor soul who, for whatever reason, forgot to bring an umbrella or suitable coat. A wicked thought forms. The winds are against him, but Toki snorts as much phlegm as he has and, mixing it with saliva, forms a round, fat loogie that he drops from the tips of his lips. His eyes beam when the winds suddenly die right as the phlegm ball snaps and falls straight down, landing on top of that person’s head. 

Toki snickers, ducking his head back in right as they look up, and hurries past the displays of medieval torture devices, suits of armor and coats of arms, straight to Magnus.

“Oh, you’re back,” Magnus mutters once Toki settles besides him, readjusting his hat. “How is it outside?”

“Gloomy,” Toki replies, wiping his face of any moisture.

“Typical English weather,” Magnus replies, bringing a hand through his hair to comb it down, as though the idea of rain were enough to make it frizz. 

Toki shrugs. He looks around the displays, finding each one lacking. After a few minutes, he asks, “Wants to gets out of here?”

Magnus looks away from the Judas’ cradle display, down to Toki. “You want to look at the jewels?”

“Not reallies,” Toki admits. “Thoughts there woulds be more prisoners here. And tortures. This ams boring.” 

“Buddy, this place hasn’t seen a prisoner in a while,” Magnus replies with a low chuckle trailing at the end. He takes out his crumbled brochure, glancing at the map for the nearest exit. “Only torture here are the fucking prices. So, what are we doing?” 

“Goes to the rivers?” Toki replied immediately. Magnus tilts his head at the idea, only for Toki to give him a yank, and adds: “Then gos to the hotels for a bits, then go sees Nathan’s performance?”

Magnus’ brows raise. “Sounds like a plan.”

They slip past the remaining levels, skipping the historical displays and famous royal jewels, stopping once at the gift shop before Toki decides he wants, nay, _needs_ to get a raven for Nathan as a gift. Not a stuffed one, but the real deal. He doesn’t remember much about the starting tour, but knows there’s at least six ravens hanging outside. He doesn’t have to worry about convincing Magnus either, because by this point the man knows just about anything is possible when you’re with a member of Dethklok.

It’s raining when they leave the museum, and Magnus makes a remark about Toki’s poor choice in taking a sweater over something to better shield against the rain. Toki doesn’t mind as much, at least not when he spots two of the ravens perched near a tree. He races out chasing after the birds who wait until the final moment to flee. Magnus calls out to remind Toki to remove his disguise before attempting any illegal activity, but decides it easier to wait for Toki to tire out first.

After a few minutes of chasing, Magnus approaches a pink-faced, exhausted Toki. “Want me to ask a guard to get one for you?” he asks, and Toki, still heaving, gives a pathetic nod.

Toki’s a hot, wet mess. Magnus knows his hair is doomed anyways, and the hotel isn’t too far, so he takes off his jacket and offers it to Toki, smiling inwardly when Toki does. There’s something undeniably adorable when Toki covers himself with the hoodie, partly obscuring his face. 

“Hey, you!” Both men glance at someone stomping over towards them. “You fucking git!” the man barks, face redder than Toki’s.

It takes Magnus a second to realize the man’s anger isn’t directed at him. “Toki, what did you-”

Uh?” Toki squints, then goes wide-eyed once he realizes it’s the same man he spat on. “Oh, shits.”

The man raises an arm up. Toki scrambles, reaching under the hood to pull off his hat, but it gets caught midway. Magnus steps in front of Toki, ready to shield him from the blow with a hand out to block the attack, but the stranger swings sharply to the left, and uppercuts Magnus right in the jaw.

“Magnus!”

Magnus stumbles back. “That all you got?” he asks, causing the angered tourist to second guess himself. Magnus stands up, wiping the side of his face, then emits a low, dark chuckle. Toki doesn’t see Magnus form a fist, and barely registers the rough swing into the man’s stomach. He does hear the heavy impact, the air wheezing from the mouth so hard he almost feels it. And he sees the man fall to his side. “S’how a real man throws a punch,” Magnus says, wiping heavy strands of wet hair from his face as he brings himself up, turns and faces Toki. 

“Magnus are you ok?” Toki rests a hand on Magnus’ face.

“Yeah,” Magnus says, hardly wincing. “How about you, man?”

“Fine, buts you gots hurt.” Toki’s eyes well with guilt.

“Was nothing, man,” Magnus insists, grinning as Toki’s pout continues to extend. “I’m lucky it’s raining damn icicles over here. I’m practically numb.”

Toki nudges Magnus. “Thanks for protectins Toki.” 

Magnus barely hears him say under the rain, the weighted hoodie, surrounding whispers and snapshots.“No problem, buddy,” he answers, patting the back of Toki’s covered head with his good hand. He shoots a threatening glare right when he notices a few fingers pointing in their direction, and some guardsmen racing over. He lists Toki’s head up and, with a grin, says, “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ficlet request from tumblr. Magnus surprises himself and Toki.

It was easy for Toki to come up with something extravagant at the drop of the hat, be it a private trip to Disneyworld, renting a large boat and stuffing it full of girls and alcohol, or buying out an entire theater just so Magnus could see his favorite, outlandish action flicks and commentate the artistry behind each outlandish scene. These over-the-top, but incredibly romantic gestures piled up, and as summer came to a close, the desire to return the favor with something equally nice intensified, and Magnus found himself contemplating his limited options.

It was windy all day long. Magnus was so preoccupied with placing the candles, that he didn’t even consider the potential consequences until he had each one spread out across the scene. He planted just over a dozen fat, non-scented candles, shoveling a hole to place each one with the heel of his boots, only to look up to the sky and see rolling clouds begin to obscure the view of the setting sun, the deepening violet and promise of visible fireworks.

He glanced at the setting. Magnus’ first inclination was to take the easy route and give up. Kick out each candle and toss them and blanket into the lake before ditching the park and pretending that he never bothered in the first place. But as the clouds continued to build in the distance, Magnus fixated on the scene he was desperately trying to reproduce, and made sure to only focus on the positives. He nabbed a decent spot, away from the actual entertainment, but picked out a part of the park that overlooked a nice lake. Even at this distance, they could still enjoy the fireworks. If the clouds were too oppressive, they still had the lake, the candles, and each other. If the candles died out; well, that made things more private. 

It was worth it in the end. After receiving word from Toki that he was on his way to meet Magnus at his location, Magnus pulled out his lighter and began the arduous process of relocating and lighting each candle. He half-expected them all to either die out, or just topple over once it was dark and the winds grew bolder, but by some miracle, the growing breeze shifted, and each one held out. It got darker faster than anticipated, and Magnus just knew the clouds would continue building and ruin any chance of entertainment, but the changing weather continued to pull the developing storm away, taking it further to the east, and giving way to a night sky sprinkled with starlight. 

Toki arrived later in the evening, erupting from the limo and carrying half a dozen things, including food and distractions, in his arms, only to look upon the scattered candles emitting their faint, but promising glow, and the crumpled blanket that Magnus couldn’t leave without it trying to get whisked away.

He almost dropped their food when he stumbled forward, catching the cascading glimmer of the lake behind Magnus, the shore radiant with a few heftier candles so carefully placed just before the earth turned soft.

“Surprise,” Magnus said with some newfound confidence, and snatched some bags off Toki’s person just so he could safely cast it aside and ease Toki down to the blanket.

They sat down together, Magnus’ eyes glued on the way Toki continued to observe and absorb the scene, standing on his knees and covering his mouth with a hand as he struggled to take out his phone with the other.

Toki pulled Magnus in with an arm, raising his phone up and desperately trying to angle it so it had the two of them in it, the candles and the darkening lake in the not-too far distance. Magnus smiled, watching Toki pout as he continued to readjust the phone, finding each attempt just beneath his standards. “No ways I’m gonna gets this alls on my phone,” Toki said, sounding mildly dissuaded.

Something far off shot in the air, erupting into a booming sparkle that consumed the sky in a blaze of gold and red. Toki dropped his phone on the blanket, annoyed he had missed his shot.

At that point, Magnus had to laugh. “Then don’t, man,” he said, reeling Toki in under his arm, and watching the pout wrinkle into a frown, then thaw into a slight smile after Magnus started rubbing his hand deep into Toki’s shoulder. “Just focus on the now and…” Magnus stopped, feeling a little self-conscious that it was suddenly his job to remind Toki to relax, to take in everything as it was.

“Appreciate it,” he concluded, feeling Toki nestle deeper right as a sudden gust hit their backs, snuffing out a few candles on the left, but not hindering their enjoyment of the show taking place above.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a long night of drinking and making a scene, Toki slowly realizes that there are consequences to his actions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been mulling this one over for a while. Decided I'd publish it for Kloktober Day 11, but after some reworking, I'm not sure if this really counts as a fight? Certainly a disagreement. Someone please tell me otherwise...
> 
> This is basically a continuation of the events from Chapter 5, but I edited it where you don't really need to read the blurb to know Toki got drunk and acted out.

3:18 am. Magnus flinched awake when he heard the rough knocking against the front door. Turning in his sheets, he checked the time and grimaced, face contorting from tired to annoyed in just seconds once he registered what was happening. Barely alert, images of just hours ago flashed across his throbbing skull, reminding him of the shit night he endured with Toki. Toki showed up tipsy because Rockso wasn’t there to placate his silly whims; and Magnus, the idiot that he was, thought he could take advantage of the impromptu date and get into Toki's pants after a night of eating and drinking. It was a night that turned sour once Toki was too drunk, too out of it, and saying and doing things Magnus wished he could just _forget._ It was a night of blaring lights from phones snapping photos of them, people recording Toki alluding to some of the terrible thing Magnus did to him, and mocking Magnus all the while. 

A fist slammed repeatedly against the door. Magnus jolted, adrenaline racing down his spine and signaling him to act. He refused to acknowledge it as anxiety, fear for Toki, or anything closely resembling it. No. He was mad. He was mad at Toki for getting drunk, for getting wasted, pinning him against a wall in a filthy bathroom, making a goddamn scene and ass of himself in front of dozens of fans. The banging persisted, and the butterflies filling his stomach alerted Magnus he had feelings beyond hate.

“Damn it all,” he groaned, removing the sheets and stumbling out of the bed with half-performed rigor.

He trekked across the dark hallway, arm and hand outstretched to guide him through the shadows on his left, until he was met with the half-opened window and delicate moonlight. His guard remained high, though, because once he was in the living room, he could hear multiple voices on the other side of the front door. Anger mounted, but so did the concern and worry for Toki’s safety, so after a quick exhale and reminder that people make mistakes, Magnus opened the door.

Standing before him was Toki, drunk as ever. Behind him were three klokateers, two of which were keeping the man up with their support.

Instant relief washed over Magnus once he saw Toki. Drunk Toki. Toki who was busy rubbing his pink knuckles from all the hard knocking. Considering where Magnus abandoned Toki, it was good to know they arrived just in time and escorted him all the way here.

Toki was still drunk though, and Magnus couldn’t let go of the remarks Toki made about them… about _him_ when he was making a scene. Toki was safe, but he was swaying, completely lax, and required the support of two men to keep him up. Worst of all, he was grinning at Magnus like there was nothing wrong.

“Oh, heys,” Toki greeted. He raised his injured hand, giving it a sluggish wave before attempting to reach for Magnus. “You lefts me.”

Magnus avoided the hand, sighing at Toki’s ignorance. “Still drunk, are we?”

“Nots so drunks that I don’ts know yous been wantin's to play,” Toki playfully retorted. That bouncy demeanor served no favors, and only spoiled Magnus’ mood even more. Toki made another attempt to touch Magnus, only again to be met with the still air as Magnus reeled himself further inward. He hoped that would be the hint Toki needed to leave, but instead, the man stood up straight, peeling himself off from his servants and said, “Okays, you can all goes now.”

“ _No_ ,” Magnus corrected, causing the klokateers to turn their attention on him. “No, you lot can take him back with you.”

“Whats do you means?” Toki slurred, not picking up on Magnus’ hesitance to let him inside.

“I’m saying you’re not spending the night,” Magnus replied, voice already turning into a low growl. He pointed outwards, and Toki, so far removed from reality, turned his head to follow it. “Go back to Mordhaus. We’ll talk about this later, when you’re sober.”

It was as good a response as he could manage without further ruining his temperament.

“But, but Magnus,” Toki whined. He stepped forward, coming close to breaking that invisible barrier. Toki rubbed his face, chuckling to himself as he stared up at Magnus with squinting eyes. “Ooohhh, this ams about the jokes I makes back at the club?”

Joke? If it was anyone else but Toki, Magnus probably would’ve just slammed the door shut right then. He'd do _so_ much more than just slam the door.

“So, you know?” His voice dripped with resentment.

“ _Oh my god_ , Magnus. It was just a jokes,” Toki replied, dismissing the whole ordeal. He flashed a crooked grin, which in turn made Magnus shrink into the darkness. “Toki didn’t means any of it.”

Magnus waited for more, but Toki only made another attempt to touch him, fall in his arms and be whisked away into the night like nothing happened. Screwy as it was, Magnus found that more hurtful than the comments Toki made. He could look past Toki reminding him he was a piece of shit if Toki at least acknowledged he shouldn’t have brought it up in front of others.

“Great.” Magnus said through clenched teeth. “Just fucking great.” A hand gripped the door, preparing for the ensuing slam. Sure, Toki was a few inches past the door. But maybe that’s what Toki needed: a good wooden smack to the nose.

Behind Toki, two of the klokateers shared a glance. One perked up and attempted to pull Toki away from his incoming rejection. “Sire, perhaps we should–”

Toki jolted from his servant, taking yet another step into the apartment. “No, don’t tells me whats we ams gonna do!” He shot a threatening glare their way, forcing all three to obey and back up to the railing.

“Listen to your servants,” Magnus said, slowly bringing the door to an eventual close. “They can take care of you.”

“But I don’ts wants to go homes.” Toki complained, attempting another step when he noticed the door gradually making its way towards him. Suddenly alert, Toki grabbed the frame with his own hand. A cold shiver racked up Magnus’ back when he tried pushing, only to be met with the wall that was Toki’s strength versus his own. Alarmed, Magnus sucked in a gulp of air, and watched Toki’s sluggish attention turn away from the frame, towards him. Magnus expected a reaction, but he didn’t expect all the intimidation from before to be swept away, replaced with wide, open eyes and sad blue irises, a lopsided frown and accompanying lower lip that pushed out when Magnus clutched the frame harder and attempted to swing it shut.

“Toki,” Magnus warned, already wincing from the tension starting to wear his arm. “Let go of the door.”

“Waits!” Toki peered up, brows sinking over his terrified eyes. “Waits, please. _Please,_ Magnus.”

Then came the push-back. Magnus felt the strain, the force of someone younger and in _much_ better shape than him trying to force it back open. The amount of stress against him was enough to subdue him. Magnus could already tell he’d likely lose if Toki decided to drop an additional pound or two on top of the frame, or allow a slight burn of the muscle and push just a _little_ harder.

“Magnus,” Toki tried again, sounding more desperate with each attempt. “Magnus, I’m sorries. I-I didn’t’s means to hurts your feelings!”

It was an apology, but it arrived too late for consideration. Despite the added mass piling against him, Magnus stood his ground. “It ain’t gonna happen, _buddy_. Not tonight.”

Heavy weight withdrew, and Toki’s face crinkled and eyes reddened once it hit him Magnus was serious. Magnus frowned, eyes narrowed as Toki paled, appearing as though he might throw up, but instead only recoiled and frantically shook his head. Toki shut his eyes, slipped and pressed his body against the door frame, still holding it, still pushing his weight, but mainly using it as a means of support. He stifled a pathetic sound, then opened his eyes, and Magnus saw tears fill those two, lovely blue pools.

“ _Magnus._ ” Toki cried, lips tightening and turning into something ugly and raw. “I really means it though.” He let go of the frame, choosing to have both hands extended towards Magnus in an empty offering. He leaned away, rejecting it and causing Toki to shrink back, bringing the same hands into his chest as though to shield his broken heart. This time Magnus reminded himself to not move or fall for the rising voice, the shaking or tears.

Sensing Magnus’ resolution, a klokateer made a second attempt to reason with Toki. “My Lord, perhaps we should consider what Mr. Hammersmith–”

Toki’s head slowly turned. “Who ams the boss here?” he asked, voice low and threatening. The klokateer froze, and Magnus’s jaw tightened as Toki lifted himself up, face red and cheeks stained with tears, and turned on his servants. “Not Magnus. Toki!” he barked and then, with tightening fists, demanded, “which ones of yous thinks you can orders Toki arounds, huh?”

“Toki, don’t get mad at them–”

Two of the klokateers grabbed the third standing between them. Toki walked over, arm swinging and grabbing the hooded servant by his collar. Once Toki had him, he pushed him against the railing. “I’m talkins to Magnus, and I don’ts needs you all budding ins our business!”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“You ams not the boss of Toki!” Toki gave the hooded servant a shake, pushing his top half further over the railing. “Maybe you needs to fucks off for a whiles, hmm?”

Magnus didn’t care much for the crazed servants that stalked him and Toki during the day, but Toki threatening to push one over the rail was too much.

“Toki, let him go,” Magnus warned, stepping out from the apartment and quickly approaching Toki once he saw the hooded servant’s legs start to slip forward. “Toki–” Magnus grabbed Toki just as he raised a fist up, aimed for the klokateer. The moment contact was made, Magnus felt the muscles under his fingertips tense, and the rest of Toki turned to face what he instinctively believed was a second challenger, another gear that dared to question his decision. Magnus saw the flashing red eyes stained with pain and frustration, sadness and the very same rage Magnus was better accustomed to witnessing whenever he had the misfortune to glance at a mirror. All those wrinkles around Toki’s eyes, his nose raised up from scowling, and teeth bared were all so off-putting, so distracting that Magnus wasn’t sure what he was staring at. He didn’t notice Toki’s fist aimed at him until it nearly made impact. The only reason it didn’t collide was because Magnus reacted at the last moment, good eye going wide with fright over its impending doom, and Toki’s spotting it and filling with just enough common sense to back off just inches before hitting Magnus.

Magnus stumbled back, reflexes barely reacting well past the point of no return, while Toki panicked in front of him. 

“O-oh,” Toki whimpered, jerking both arms away from Magnus, and tucking them just under his chin. “Oh…” He cried out again, and tears ran freely down his cheeks. “I almost…Toki almost hits…”

Toki curled forward and crumbled to the floor, dropping to his knees, and then to his side. The klokateers carefully huddled around him, none too eager to test their wretched master’s patience. Magnus remained where he was, still in shock, left eye signaling a dull ache that crawled up to his brain as a friendly reminder that now was the time to either fight, or run. Adrenaline coursed through him, sending the same message. Magnus thought to close the door, flee to his bedroom and smother himself in darkness, pray that he’d wake up and discover this was all some horrific nightmare, but then heard Toki sobbing all over himself, and beheld his miserable form.

“Am sorries,” Toki continued to spit out through heaving cries and shaking fingers. “Please don’ts hates Toki!”

Frowning, Magnus responded: “I don’t.”

“Don’ts leave Toki!” Toki begged, staring up at Magnus with drenched pupils. The sight sent an icy shiver up Magnus’ spine, and it took some reminding where he was, where the two of them were at this moment. Toki sniffed, face contorting as he struggled out his next plea. “I makes a mistakes. Am so-sorries. Please, d-don’ts leaves me.”

Another shudder gripped Magnus as he recollected the very same thoughts that tormented and afflicted him for so many years. Hearing Toki say it was so alien, almost unreal.

“I’m not going to leave you, Toki,” Magnus said over the bawling. “But I need you to know I’m pissed.”

“Not gonna hits you,” Toki replied, burying his face back into his shaking palms. “N-nots gonna hits you… am sorries. Toki ams not his father… _please_ , Magnus. Please? Please!”

Was this really happening, right now? Magnus ripped his stare away from Toki, to the gears that shadowed him. He waited for them to say something, make some suggestion as to what to do. Surely there was a protocol for this sort of thing? 

“Ams not bad” Toki continued whimpering. “Didn’ts mean to says it all…Toki knows Magnus ams not bad. P-Please, Magnus, _please,_ tell Toki he ims not bad. Magnus?”

He didn’t want to do it. Not because he was still upset. _Well,_ he was still pissed, but because there would be a great deal of hypocrisy behind what he wanted to say. As far as he could tell, he wasn’t in the right position to request it, but with Toki locked in the fetal position, crying his name for everyone to hear, Magnus couldn’t think of anything else to do.

“Hey, look at me.”

Toki’s balled form wriggled as he continued to cover and smother his distressing cries. Magnus sighed, so hard the messy tangles that fell across his face now lifted from the exhale.

“Look at me, _Toki_ ,” he said, forcing down the frustration, and leaving only the firm, controlled command necessary to calm the erratic younger man into listening. Toki’s head dipped into his hands, and Magnus watched each shaking appendage start to form fists that wiped the tears off his face before dropping.

Two soppy eyes glanced up at him. They were not too unlike the frightened stare that once quaked each time he unlocked that heavy steel door, intruding upon whatever secret conversation Toki and that girl shared. 

Magnus bit his cheek. This was really happening. “Toki, you need to stop drinking so much. You’re really out of fucking control,” he said, and to his surprise, saw Toki slowly nod in agreement.

“I kn-knows,” Toki muttered, swiping at his eyes again as a new strain of tears suddenly afflicted him. “Toki ims bad when he d-drinks too much…”

“Fuck, man,” Magnus said, shaking his head at the confession. _Seriously_ , he thought, and almost wanted to kick the wall when he ceased and saw Toki still looking up at him, miserable as ever. Exasperated, Magnus ran a hand through his hair. “If you know, _why_ do you do it then?”

Toki covered his mouth with a hand. “I don’ts knows,” he admitted, voice muffled as he tried answering into his palm. “Ims funny? And Toki… _I_ does it to feels good, I guess?”

He was really having this conversation with Toki. All those years shooting up, mixing prescriptions or outright avoiding them, revisiting dark thoughts, or drinking himself to a near-stupor, and now he was telling Toki he had to knock that crap off? Shit, just a few weeks ago it was Toki telling him to ease up on the caffeine, to lower his nicotine intake to just one cigarette a day now.

“You feel good right now?” Magnus asked, almost snapping at Toki, and watched the man squirm on the floor, bury his face again before succumbing to a rapid series of head shakes.

“No,” he said through sniffs, looking and sounding like the same terrified victim Magnus tormented so long ago.

A lump formed in Magnus’ throat. “Why?” he asked, hearing his voice start to tremble as Toki carefully brought himself up to his knees. A klokateer attempted to help, but stopped when Toki shot him a temporary, but testing stare.

Toki returned to Magnus. “B-because I hurts your feelings,” he answered dutifully, or as best his could with all the stifles and sniffles. His face curdled as he added on, “And nows you don’ts wants to be with me. Magnus, I–”

“You’re not a bad person, Toki.”

Toki stopped, wiping snot from under his nose as Magnus gathered whatever strength he had remaining from this long, arduous day.

“But _you_ know,” Magnus started, feeling his chest tighten and heart start to ache, “you _know_ what that shit does to me.” Toki blinked underneath him, nodding his head and tearfully agreeing with every word he spoke. “Like, what the hell am I supposed to do or say when you bring that up? And in front of other people?”

“Ams so sorries.” Still on his knees, Toki straightened up, clasping his hands together, and making Magnus feel all the guiltier, completely shame ridden, in the process. “Please don’ts leaves me.”

Magnus couldn’t believe the weight of such a request. He’d heard a similar one before, again from Toki, a simple plea to stop hurting him, or Abigail, or to just stop for a moment, or to simply stop scaring him. Now Toki was asking him to not do the very thing Magnus feared Toki would one day do to him.

“I’m _not_ going to abandon you,” Magnus said, feeling his voice ease once he saw Toki’s own expression begin to soften at the words. He looked so damn hopeful. Magnus was confident him almost getting pummeled meant Toki learned a lesson about lowering his alcohol consumption. The longer he stared, the more Magnus wanted to forgive Toki. At the very least, let the drunk idiot sleep it off on the couch.

He tried to consider the idea, but the ache from being called out in public before, and Toki still had referred to it as a joke, had nearly pushed a servant off the railing, and had just admitted to baggage that Magnus knew he was going to spend the rest of his night mulling and contemplating. 

Magnus frowned, spotting his miserable reflection in Toki’s eyes. “But I sure as hell am not going to let you inside,” Magnus said, internally wincing at the sight of Toki collapsing, long hair draping over his face and hands unclasping and smacking the floor in defeat. “Not tonight. You know why.” 

“I knows, but–” Toki stopped, covering his mouth to muffle a cry. He succeeded, but just once. Magnus could tell after this Toki would likely fall apart again. Magnus knew he couldn’t face Toki when it happened, otherwise he’d bend.

“You said it yourself, man.” Magnus tried smiling, not to be cruel, but to let Toki know he understood. He attempted, but failed, and the heartache branched across Magnus’ chest as he backed into his apartment, much to Toki’s displeasure. “There are consequences to my actions,” he said, and pressure mounted behind his good eye. “Well, the same applies to you.”

Toki struggled to pick himself up. He tried reaching for Magnus, but dropped his hand midway in defeat. “Didn’t means to hurts you,” he whispered.

This was too much. “I know, Toki,” Magnus said, then rested a hand on the door frame. Toki’s eyes widened, but he remained glued to the floor, complacent with the punishment being handed to him. “We’ll talk in a few days, alright?”

Toki looked up at him, teary eyes and pouting, and Magnus slammed the door on it. With a shaky breath Magnus turned the lock, hastily made his way to the hallway, and ensured each footstep was audible so Toki knew he was leaving and wouldn’t return. He made it to the hallway, where it was so dark he needed guidance, but neither hand was willing to leave his aching chest. His good eye started blur when he thought he heard whimpering, but when Magnus finally managed to free his left hand and used it to cover his trembling mouth, everything turned silent.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus wakes up early to surprise Toki.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to fill another kloktober prompt! 
> 
> Day 17: Birthday

Two cats were just outside the bedroom window, hissing and spitting at one another, when Magnus woke up. He stared out, unthinking as the wild banter outside came and went, only then followed by the sounds of morning air, birds chirping, and the eventual stretch of morning light that would strike him just minutes before the alarm. What a pain that would be, Magnus thought, smiling as he turned his head. He was about to bury his face into a net of silky brown hair, when something fluttered by, a pigeon perhaps, and randomly set off that reminder that he woke up early for a reason.

He slumped into the pillow as he tried to stretch, his body aching good under the shared body heat. Magnus sucked in a short breath, and his heart started to pick up as he began the onerous task of slowly lifting each of his appendages off from Toki. Thankfully he was the bigger spoon last night, which made slipping away easier than normal, but each time he did he had to pause and wait for Toki to react. The man only stirred, whimpered some nonsensical sound into his pillow before curling deeper into his makeshift nest, but it stressed Magnus to such a degree that he was shaky with adrenaline once it was over. 

Magnus grabbed his phone resting by the nightstand, and waited until he was sure Toki finished sinking into the covers before turning on the home screen. The harsh light smacked him on the face, and Magnus nearly dropped the stupid thing to cover and rub his offended eye. But he saw that he had an hour before Toki’s morning alarm would set everything into motion, which meant he had _plenty_ of time to prepare.

Eye on Toki, Magnus dragged himself up, then slipped out of bed one leg at a time. Cool air assaulted and sent a pulse of goosebumps up each limb, and a voice rang in his head to return to the warm bliss he helped create all night long. It told him to go back to sleep and let Toki wake up to him being the first thing he’d see, but Magnus was determined to make this work. He slipped out of bed, silently cursing at the morning for being so damn cool at this hour, but thankful that he left it without warranting another complaint from Toki.

He exited the room, picking up tossed bottoms and a shirt along the way before turning into the hallway. Magnus dropped the worn clothes off in the bathroom, then returned to the hallway, this time to open the closet and take the outfit he stowed the day before. Not wanting to waste any time, Magnus returned to the bathroom and got ready. He fixed himself as best he could without turning anything electronic on, save for the light, and once he was halfway decent, left for the living room.

The keys were hanging by the door. It took a minute of mental preparation for him to snatch the keys, and another as he put on a coat and slipped into his boots. He cloaked himself under his hood, unlocked the front door, and braved the refreshing, but cold air. His lower back ached for the bed, and his head split in half when he had the misfortune to look up and spot the rising sun, but Magnus continued onward, huddling and shaking and embracing his chest. He made it to his car and opened the trunk, revealing a small, bright yellow gift bag with adorning, colorful tissue paper and ribbons. It got a lot warmer once Magnus picked it up by handles, raised it and checked for the umpteenth time that everything was safe and accounted for. It needed to look perfect, after all. It had to be perfect.

He lifted the end of a crumbled, pink corner, then closed the trunk and practically raced back inside, stopping just feet from the door before returning to a more silent approach.

Magnus struggled trying to find a proper place to drop the gift. First the coffee table, but then realized the sofa obscured the view. He tried the kitchen counter next, but remembered he still needed to make breakfast, and knew he’d somehow get batter and everything sticky known to man all over the bag. The kitchen table was a good spot as any, but Magnus had plans that involved decorating, and didn’t want it to get in the way. He briefly debated placing it in the bedroom, but figured it couldn’t really count as a “big surprise” if half the surprise was in one room, the other in another. He settled on leaving it on top of the sofa, at least until he finished everything in the kitchen.

He checked the time again. Just under 45 minutes. Magnus snatched up his laptop, returned to the kitchen and opened it. He closed about fifteen tabs before finally stumbling on the correct one and, after bringing the volume low, watched the same cooking video he’d been studying all week, pausing between each ingredient and measurement and pulling out similar ones and lining them up on the counter.

Flour. Milk. One egg. Baking powder, _not_ baking soda. Magnus picked out a plastic bowl and cup. He didn’t have any teaspoons. Would a normal spoon do? Did it matter how much salt he put in there? Could he swap the sugar for stevia? Magnus cracked the egg and watched it hit and splat all over the dry flour. The yoke bobbled. He poked at it, breaking the skin and watched with animal-like interest as it oozed and spilled over the dry ingredients. At what point was he supposed to stop? He wanted the food to still be warm when Toki woke up. Magnus eyeballed the glass of milk he poured before tossing it into the mix. That was about a cup, right? _Right_.

The video played almost all the way through until the pretty little host tossed chocolate chips into her batter. Magnus paused then and there, then closed the laptop before nervously picking up a cart of blueberries.

Not too different from chocolate chips, he tried convincing himself. A warm fire glowed in his stomach as he thought of Toki trying to force feed him these things with yogurt or other fruits, and it supplied him enough confidence to take a detour from the recipe. He sorted through the berries, scrutinizing each one and picking out any that didn’t meet his standards, and for each one that did, felt a delicate tickle reach the back of his throat. He went through half of the first packet, then another before dumping the remaining berries into the batter, mixing it all together and smothering any burst of doubt that dared to enter his mind each time he saw a berry burst or leak thin trails of purple across the gooey mixture.

When it was all done, Magnus set the bowl aside, located his phone, and saw he had spent nearly twenty minutes trying to make blueberry pancakes, and panicked a little as he wondered if there would be time to set the table, cook a few morsels and decorate them like the host in the video did…

Magnus dropped the phone on the counter and turned the stove on to low heat. He opened a drawer, carefully plucked two plates from the shelves, teeth clenching as he struggled to keep the noise at a minimum. First the plates, then the forks and knives. A shame Toki never bothered with fancy napkins. A shame _he_ never thought to buy any for this occasion. Magnus pulled two mugs and placed them as nicely as he could on the table. Hard to really say what did and didn’t look nice. Toki possessed a magical touch with this sort of thing; any surprise he concocted always fell perfectly into place. He turned on the electric kettle, then glanced at the time. That scary tickle returned, only this time, Magnus welcomed it, savoring it over any other feeling he’d likely undertake were it not for the occasion. 

Don’t forget the dishes! He hurriedly turned on the water, but not before letting a hand drop over the stovetop. Warm. Perfect. Got to get to it. He squeezed more than an adequate amount of detergent into the sponge and, giving himself some leeway, raced through the chore. He needed to hurry. The first pancake always came out weird, and Magnus didn't want Toki to wake up with a plateful of pancakes with ringlets or a burnt outer layer. 

He had just twelve minutes left, which was just enough time to lightly burn the first pancake and swap back into his pajamas. Magnus slid a pan on top of the heater, then left to undress as it warmed. He tiptoed past the bedroom, heart beating so loud he could hear it echo in his skull. He made the quick outfit swap, taking the clothes with him and dumping them on top of the sofa, besides the gift bag. Shoot, the gift! Magnus checked his hands of any batter, then picked up the bag and carefully placed it on top of Toki’s usual seat.

Magnus took a step back. It almost looked…nice. No, this _was_ nice. He just needed to get the pancakes on the table. Sugar free syrup. Maybe extra blueberries?

God the tickle was getting to him, reaching past his throat and making it hard for Magnus to think straight as he bit his bottom lip, poured a nice spoonful of pale, off-purple batter into the pan. Is this what it feels like? Does Toki feel this every time he tries to make you smile? Because if so, it sucks. It really sucks, he thought, but kept on smiling, and turning into a beam that competed against the morning light because he flipped the pancake at the right moment, revealing a lovely shade of brown and dark purple speckles.

He didn’t think about the plates until the very last minute, returning to the table and snuffing any potential self-berating to admire the placement of everything, then picked them up and covered each one with a pancake. To butter, or not to butter? Magnus though butter and syrup were a must, but didn’t want things to get too soggy. Sugar? Berries, then? He had a little less than half a packet left. Might as well make it extra healthy, right? Magnus placed each plate back on the table, arms starting to shake with the knowledge that time was running out. He had his pancakes, and in a minute the kettle would go off. He’d need to turn it off now, then hurry back to bed.

Magnus made one final glance at his phone before he cracked open the door. Three minutes. He crept into the bedroom, saw Toki hadn’t moved much since his departure, and found it far easier to slip back into the bed without disturbing the man. His legs stretched across the cool sheets, and although Magnus was terrified of what might happen next, he let the sensation of the soft fabric, and Toki’s natural heat welcome him back into the cozy sanctum. 

He waited through the longest two minutes in existence, turning on his side right as Toki’s phone ignited into a cacophony of random techno music. He knew when it would happen, but it didn't stop him from swallowing as much anxiety as he could once he heard the music play. Besides him, Toki jolted, twisting in the sheets and groaning to himself before extending an arm out to grab and shut off their morning alarm. Magnus buried his face into the pillow, closing his eyes right as Toki flopped back into the sheets, greedily snatching up the blankets and covering himself before shifting to his side.

When Magnus opened his eyes, Toki was staring back at him. “Mornin’,” Toki whispered happily into the covers. He lunged forward before Magnus had time to react, kissing him on the forehead and pulling Magnus into a lazy embrace. “You smells nice…” 

“Morning.” He yawned. It was easy with Toki holding him like this, and within moments, was already considering asking Toki for an additional twenty minutes of just _this_. No moving. No thinking. But now the sun was breaking into the room, stretching over Magnus’ shoulder, and hitting Toki in the face. 

He can always turn around. You can adjust the blinds. You can hold him. Sleep.

Don’t forget the pancakes. Magnus wrapped an arm around Toki’s side, making him shudder underneath before nuzzling closer. A hand slipped under Magnus' shirt, feeling him up and down and returning that same shiver. Magnus half-expected he’d have to come up with a reason to stop Toki then and there, but just as that hand fell upon Magnus’s hipbone, he started to relax and cease all movement. Then, Toki yawned. It was clear they desired the same thing, and were it not for all the effort, Magnus might have just told Toki they should nod off for a bit longer. Screw the sun. 

Did you remember to turn off the stove? 

“You ok?” he heard Toki ask.

Magnus found Toki staring at him again. “Woke up early,” he lied through a tired smile. “Couldn’t fall asleep after that.”

A second hand rested at the base of Magnus’ jaw. Toki rolled his thumb over stubble, making soft sounds as he did. “Oh, that’s terrible,” he said through an endearing complexion. “Well, we can snuggles for a while if you wants to?” Toki shifted in place, eyes going from Magnus, to the door. “Once I use the bathroom–”

“It’s your day, buddy. Whatever you say, goes.” Magnus smiled, dragging the ends of mouth up more so out of tender exhaustion than anything else. Toki returned the smile, partially covering it as he slowly brought himself up, then yawned. Magnus waited until the man slipped out of bed, dropping in search of clothes, then casually added, “Do me a favor though? Get me some water, will ya? For my meds?”

“Okays.”

Anxiety returned right as Toki stood up, kicking one leg though his pajama bottoms before hobbling and attempting the same with his second. Magnus rolled on to his back, enjoying the struggle and the sounds of birds that were still chirping outside. That ticklish feeling ran across his heart, filled his lungs, and threatened to escape him right as Toki started for the door.

“Hey,” Magnus called, stopping Toki just before he grabbed the door knob. He waited for Toki to turn, and when he did, was welcomed with that unbelievable sight of Toki being here, half-dressed and hair askew, and he came so close to spoiling it then and there. Smiling, Magnus said, “Happy birthday,” and watched Toki light up, glowing from ear to ear before silently mouthing “thanks." Then he opened the door, and he left the room. 

Magnus shut his eyes, concentrating on the muffled, but distinct sounds of bare feet hitting the floor. How much longer would he have to wait? A minute to piss. One more if Toki decided to tidy up a bit. Magnus rolled on his side, somewhat eager to peek through the door and catch the moment Toki left the bathroom, notice the smell of something sweet in the kitchen, or maybe wouldn’t’, but would see the pretty little gift bag all wrapped up and waiting for him by the table.

Don’t. You’ll spoil the surprise.

Magnus covered himself when he heard Toki reenter the living room. He turned his back on the scene, eyes shut and butterflies, birds and a swarm of bees swirled in his gut, telling him he did a good job and now he just had to wait. Wait for it to come together. Toki walking down the short hallway. Stopping. Detecting something sweet in the air. Sounds turning muffled, but Magnus could see it all happening under the sheets. Toki approaching the table. Spotting the food. The gift. Picking it up and bending its corners and tissue paper under his touch. Silence. Magnus pressed his face into the pillow. Then came the sounds of the heel hitting the faux wood flooring hard, and Magnus opened his eyes, letting those anxieties flutter out in the form of an exhale right as a hand smacked the door open.

Magnus felt Toki start at the foot of the bed, crawling forward, encasing his legs in the process, and continuing until he was about halfway, hovering above Magnus. Toki rested on top of Magnus’ midsection. His hands gripped the comforter before hastily yanking it off from Magnus. The light hit his face, but then Toki slid to meet him, obscuring it with his large, shadowed form. Pinned down, there wasn’t much else Magnus could do but admire the view. Magnus snickered up at Toki’s reddening cheeks, his bottom lip curling inward at Magnus’ reaction, and lunging further and grabbing the man by his arms once the teasing smirk transitioned into an airy chuckle. Magnus yanked him closer. More weight pressed on him as Toki toppled over, grabbing Magnus, ensnaring him under his mighty grip. Feeling cheeky, Magnus tried kicking up a leg, just to garner a reaction. Toki doubled down, making a soft complaint before pushing his hot, red face against Magnus’.

“You mades.” Toki’s whisper splashed over his cheek. 

There was hair everywhere, covering the two in a dark brown veil. Magnus wanted nothing more than to fix a few strands and capture that pent up emotion in Toki’s eyes. “Yeah?”

“You mades me breakfast.”

“I did,” Magnus answered, cracking a mean grin as Toki wriggled on top of him, overwhelmed by the surprise. 

Toki freed his grip on Magnus, only to then take him by the jaw and lead him into a kiss. Hands free, Magnus pulled Toki into an embrace, and for a while, it was just them in the bed, Toki cupping and kissing and humming something soft, and Magnus holding on, extending that bliss for as long as he could. It wasn't their first birthday together. Toki lowered, lips pursing and finding their way down Magnus neck, and Magnus feeling his arms sink as he sighed, wishing nothing more than to forget breakfast. Not their first birthday, he thought, but the first he got right. Very right. At some point, Magnus brought his hands up to his face to cover him from the intense light, and bring some shade to his heated form. His shoulders prickled. That tickle burned and twisted raced down his abdomen, where Toki lingered and teased. 

Eventually, Toki pulled away. It happened far too soon for either’s liking, but Magnus knew it needed to end. There was still breakfast to consider.

But instead of yanking him up and dragging him to the kitchen, Toki remained on top of him, grinning wide, ears raised and eyes aglow with love. “You ams the best ever, Magnus,” Toki said, falling beside Magnus and yanking him close by the shoulder. “Thank you! You...you makes me very happy.”

“I know,” Magnus said, chuckling as he bumped into Toki. The blankets shifted, and Toki inched closer, and again came that urge to just toss the day’s plans aside in favor of having another go at one another, only this time, Magnus was far more willing to oblige.

So what if the pancakes were a little cold?


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus picks up a new hobby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is for Day 21: Hobbies

It was an uneventful Sunday morning that was set to be like any other, with Magnus committed to completing a long-neglected list of tasks and chores before attending to whatever small pleasures he had time for later that afternoon, possibly evening. He was midway through two days’ worth of dishes when he glanced over his shoulder and caught Toki lounging on the kitchen table, still in his pajama bottoms, head resting on top of his arm as he stared blankly at a video playing on the laptop.

Excitable music, violence and explosions were taking place on screen, but Toki was jaded, eyes lidded and attention spanning elsewhere. Beneath the laptop was a dull turquoise sheet that depicted a list of monthly checkpoints Magnus had yet to fulfill. He returned to the dishes, carrying a small lump of guilt in his throat while he reviewed every single act of procrastination by him through the week. He sank an arm into the warm water, groping and counting the plates and pans he’d need to clean, then added it up the remaining chores he put off, him promising Toki he’d finish it all before his next appointment, and then weighted it against Toki spending the entire day trapped inside the house, monitoring or cheering him on in the process, but otherwise doing little for his own behalf.

A cool breeze brushed across Magnus’ back, first to compel him to finish his neglected work, then to distract him with a lovely view of a clear blue sky. Magnus hurried through a spatula before the temptation rang again, bringing with it an image of a yellow gift bag, a small remote controlled plane, and Toki attentively spending over an hour going through the manual as he pieced his gift together. He washed a fork, then bowls caked with drying cereal, and when he was done, looked over his shoulder again, past Toki and over to the shelf. 

The small plane took up its own row: a shiny, red and silver symbol of success that stood proudly next to its remote control. It was at Toki’s insistence that it would be in safer hands in the apartment than in Mordhaus, away from friends who didn’t appreciate the inherently delicate build of the model. Magnus was only too happy to move his Viking incense burner, random coins and historical books for the toy, all while under the impression he’d take him out soon and fly the plane.

Magnus glanced out the window. “It’s a beautiful day for flying,” he stated aloud, and let a dish sink into the mountain of suds when Toki’s chair groaned from a shift in weight.

“Flying?” he heard Toki mutter over the decreasing volume, until he could make out Toki’s hand hitting the key. It was one word, but Magnus detected a shift in tone near the end. Even half awake, Toki knew the promise of an impromptu adventure when he heard one. 

Smiling, Magnus turned, rested a hand on the wet countertop and pointed an anxious finger at the shelf that harbored the resting plane. “You want to give the remote-controlled plane a go?”

His smile grew as Toki chased after his finger, settling his sights on the plane. Magnus reached for the faucet, turning it off and growing excited when the chair’s legs continued to drag. He listened in on Toki walking over to the shelf, and was about to pull the plug from the sink’s drain, when he heard a sigh.

“Whats about your chores?” Toki asked. Magnus halted, looked over his shoulder, and found Toki caught standing midway amid the shelf and the table, between the plane and the turquoise sheet. “You said you reallies wanted to makes your goals this week.”

Magnus rubbed his temples. Leave it to Toki to put up a responsible front when neither of them wanted it. Magnus inhaled, shutting his eyes to mentally build himself up to agree with Toki’s comment. The chores had to be done. Magnus needed Toki’s signatures: proof of slow, but significant growth. As stupid as they were, Magnus also wanted those signatures.

But he also didn’t want Toki stuck watching over him for an entire day.

“Well, guess we better hurry to the park then?” Magnus replied, shrugging with both palms turning upward. “Get some flying in before I have to go back to work?”

Toki glanced worryingly at the sheet. “But your therapist–”

“Said I needed to go out more anyways,” Magnus finished, leaving the kitchen to head over to the table. He picked up the turquoise sheet, then scanned the dozen or so checkpoints that needed fulfilling. He quickly went down the list, ignoring anything household or medicinal related, turned the sheet around, and then pointed at a nearly completed row of checks. “Look. This here,” Magnus said, smiling as Toki drew closer to hover over him. He coughed into a hand, then tightened his throat. “Here we are… _“Forming Positive Associations with the Outside World”_ ,” he said, giving his worst impression of an uppity, female voice.

Toki giggled behind him. “You needs to be nicer to her,” he said, dropping his arms and resting them over Magnus’ chest. “But, you does have a good points.” 

Magnus lifted his head. “Get dressed. I’ll finish the dishes,” he said, succumbing to a short, but relieved chuckle when Toki gave him an approving nod. “We’ll spend, what? An hour or two outside? I’ll have plenty of time to get this blasted sheet signed off, assuming I can’t convince you to cheat for me?”

“No, sorries,” Toki replied, arms wrapping around Magnus’ frame. He lowered his head, first to peek at the rows that were nearly completed, the ones that were far from it, and the few that they purposely ignored in the meanwhile. Magnus felt Toki’s head bump into him, his hair drape over his shoulder as he quietly read over the massive compilation, then withdrew a hand just to bring a finger over to a number Magnus had avoided since starting the sheet. “We cans get this ones done, too,” he said, sounding confident.

Finger blocking his view, Magnus glanced at Toki. “What?”

“Numbers 33: “Records New Experiences”.”

Magnus dropped to the number and locked on to the three empty checkboxes besides the title. “Toki, I have no checks for that one.”

“Yeah, buts it still works,” Toki replied, encouraging Magnus with a short rub, then snatched the sheet up before he could think of some excuse. Giggling to himself, Toki pecked Magnus once on the forehead. “Hurries up and do the dishes. We can'ts be out for too longs,” he said, then sprang from kitchen, hastily making his way into the bedroom to dress into his day clothes.

Magnus remained in the chair a bit longer, elated to know he brought some excitement into Toki’s life, but also compounded by the idea of being recording himself standing in some vacant lot while Toki flew his plane. That would look awkward. It _was_ awkward, and Magnus cringed knowing he’d have to explain and provide context to the event without looking like a fool. He almost wanted to reconsider the plan, focus on filling rows he already committed to, but then Toki rushed out, holding up two coats and asking Magnus which was better, and looking so cheery that Magnus was emboldened to somehow make this work.

* * *

They drove around the park twice, trying to figure out which hill was best for flying (it had to be a hill, right?), before finally settling on a patch of land nestled not too far from a shaded picnic area. Magnus unlocked the trunk of the car, and Toki hurried out, taking the remote control and handing it to Magnus. Toki coveted the plane, eyes glimmering as he carefully picked it up by the wings, then analyzed each portion as he slowly made his way up the hill.

Once there, Toki dropped to the ground, legs crossed on top of the other as he read through the manual. A gentle breeze tickles Magnus' neck, and he huddled into his black coat, waiting for that magical moment where Toki stood up, turned on the controller and took flight.

“You having fun down there?” Magnus withheld his sarcasm. Toki so concentrated on something was such a rare sight to behold that he didn’t want to spoil it. His hand dipped into one of the coat’s pockets, and he let his thumb slide over the screen, debating whether he should take a picture of Toki while the moment lasted. Who knew when he’d see this side of Toki again? Magnus smirked at the thought, but as he pulled out his phone, wondered if he could get away recording Toki. If he talked in the video his therapist would know he was there, experiencing the event, right?

“Okays, I think I gots the general idea,” Toki said, pulling the corner of his bottom lips into his mouth before casting the manual aside and picking up the remote control.

“I mean, how hard can it be?” Magnus jested, taking a step to the side as Toki sprang up, taking the plane and controller in each hand. “It’s just a plane?”

“Uhms, well,” Toki said, carrying the plane over to a more even patch of land, “it kinda looks like there ams levels to this flying thing.” He dropped the plane on the grass, then took a few steps back. He flicked some switch on the controller, then waved at Magnus to come stand with him. 

“Levels?”

“Yeah,” Toki replied, sticking his tongue out as his index finger hovered over another switch. “This ams beginners, intermediate, and manual flights,” he explained, flicking the switch up two notches, then returning to its original place. He pointed at a bright red button. “And this buttons is for loops. Oh, and this,” he said, pointing to the two joysticks, “this one ims for them throttles, going ups and downs, and this one ims for adjusting the rudders.”

“Will there be a test later?” Magnus inquired, this time allowing just a little sarcasm to sneak past his lips. 

Toki turned his head slightly. “ _Maybes_ ,” he responded. “You don’ts pass and I won’t signs your progress reports.”

"No need to be cruel,” Magnus said, trying to feign nervousness, but the sparkle in Toki’s eyes, combined with that playful nature of his, did more to excite than anything else. “Do let me know when you intend on flying the plane.”

“Alright, alright.” Toki lifted the controllers, then, eyes on the plane, gently pushed one of the joysticks. Magnus heard a soft hum emit from the plane, and noticed that a small portion of the wings had lowered. He glanced at Toki, who was still busy with the controller. “Let’s sees. Okays…”

The plane hummed again, this time inching forward as Toki pressed on the joystick. A nasty little quake erupted in Magnus’ stomach as he listened to the tiny engine hiss. Shit, there’s something wrong, he thought. You got him a dud. The hill is too steep. The batteries you bought weren’t good. The manual doesn’t know what it’s talking about. Toki can’t fly a plane. You ruined–

Then the plane lobbed over a small amount of crabgrass, and once it passed that hurdle, burst into the sky before either knew what had happened.

“It… It’s up!” Toki said, head rising and following the small plane that continued its speedy trajectory towards some distant trees. Toki paled. “Oh, shoots.”

“Turn it!” Magnus yelled, grabbing a shoulder.

“Okay, okay!” Toki dropped his stare to the controller, then quickly edged the left joystick to the side. Both watched as the plane made a sharp turn just feet away from the branches of a massive tree. Toki eased up on the throttle, decreasing the plane's speed as it made yet another turn, this time aimed for the sky.

Magnus let out an exhale. “Shit, that was close!”

“Yeah, it almost hits a tree.” Toki replied with a relieved grin. His cheeks and tip of his nose were a bright shade of rosy pink. Magnus wanted to pull out his phone and capture that moment, but then realized in horror that no one was manning the plane, and that there was now a silver and red spot that appeared to be plummeting towards the land.

“Toki, the plane!”

“Oh!” Toki returned to the throttle, bringing the plane back into the sky. It zipped back up, making a surprisingly good show as it twirled its way back up, cutting through the gentle breezes without complaint. Toki gasped, taking a few steps forward as though he were afraid of losing it. “Oh, wowee, this ams a lot more complicateskit than it looks!”

Magnus rubbed his back, reducing some building stress in Toki’s shoulders. “Nah, you’re doing good.”

“I almost crashed its,” Toki said, not letting his eyes off the plane as he tried to carefully direct it back to them.

“ _Almost_ , but didn’t,” Magnus corrected, grinning when Toki dropped his head to hide some of his deepening blush. He returned to his pocket, hand gripping the phone as he took a few steps back. “C’mon, lets see you try for a loop or something. We got plenty of time for a few loops.”

Toki gave a nod, then made the plane to another wide turn before heading straight back up. With Toki better focused, the plane’s flight pattern made a more gradual shift as it leveled, flying straight for several feet, increasing its speed all the while. Magnus aimed his phone at Toki, capturing that look of concentration intermixed with the burst of nervousness as he hit a button near the top, causing the plane to make a wipe loop before returning back to its path. Toki grinned, pointed a finger at the distant plane for Magnus to record. He let his phone rest on Toki for a few seconds longer, getting the way he jumped a little after completing his first ever trick, then turned up at the sky where he thought the plane would be, only to capture and record the solid caste of blue.

“Where’s the plane?” Magnus asked.

“Ups there!" 

Magnus lifted his phone higher, good eye wincing under the light as he turned, spotting a glistening silver plane circling them.

“Oh,” he murmured, watching the plane turn on its side before twisting into a mad spiral, dipping several feet, then darting straight back into the sky.

Toki must’ve hit another button, because Magnus heard a few beeps, then witnessed the plane make another, faster loop. The plane settled, returning to a steady trajectory. There were few clouds in the sky, and what speckled the deep blue were so small and scarce that Magnus thought the plane was attempting to soar into the ocean. He blinked for just a second, and when he opened his eyes, lost the red speckle to space. Magnus lowered his phone, stowing it back inside his pocket without checking to see if he had finished recording.

The sun had almost reached its peak, which made locating the plane not too difficult. Magnus found it rather calming to look after the plane, follow its wide turns and random spirals, and then close his eyes and let it vanish for him to locate and chase again. Toki played with the throttle, testing its speed and sending it higher into the sky. Magnus turned his head, bad eye to the sun. He brought a hand up to cast some shade as he searched for the tiny beacon, smiling when he finally found it trailing over a field.

He didn’t realize a toy plane could reach such lengths, and relatively cheap one at that. Not that Magnus meant to skimp out on Toki, but he had seen far more expensive models, ones Magnus couldn’t quite afford. After watching the plane melt into the sky like a minuscule comet, Magnus wished he had saved an additional paycheck or two. If this was what a hundred-dollar plane could do, then imagine what a three hundred dollar one could pull off? Magnus dropped his head, returning to the earth, and found Toki standing beside him, calmly guiding the plane lower and lower, until it fell and crash landed just a several feet in front of them.

It took a minute to recover the plane, a few more for Toki to pop the funny little spinner back into place before giving it the go-ahead. Magnus was busy staring out at a couple walking their dogs when Toki suddenly shoved the controller into his hands.

“Your turns now!” He beamed at Magnus.

“What?” Magnus glanced at the massive controller lined with buttons, triggers, switches, levers and tiny words that might as well have been in another language. He scoffed, breaking into an anxious chuckle. “Nah, man. It’s your gift.”

“And I’ms asking if you wants to fly it?” Toki said, slapping a hand across Magnus back. He got closer as Magnus stared worryingly at the joysticks. “You lookst like you wants to fly it.”

“I didn’t read the manual.” 

Toki snorted a burst of air through his nose. “I can shows you,” he said, brushing off the comment with a wave of his hand. “Here–”

He swooped around Magnus, pressing his front close until it bumped against the man’s back. Toki peeked out from Magnus’ right, head resting against his arm. Magnus stiffened, eyes opening wide and mouth drawing to a tight close as Toki’s arms appeared from both sides, reaching and fixing Magnus’ into a more suitable position. He stood silent, obedient to Toki’s whim, letting his large hands fix a stray finger, adjust the amount of space his left hand was taking up, and bringing both hands higher up the side so he could reach some of the buttons near the top.

“Okays, sees this?” Toki asked. Magnus watched a finger just above his own wiggle. Magnus blinked, face prickling as he raised his finger and accidentally bumped it into Toki’s. He heard Toki chuckle, then say, “okays, you push this button here and here…”

Nervously, Magnus gave a nod. “Ok.”

“They ams the trick buttons,” Toki said, cheeks rubbing against the coat’s hefty material. “And this stick, rights here? That controls them little flaps. Makes the plane goes up and down, okay?”

“R-right.” 

“And this ones ims for the rudder,” Toki said, then rubbed his finger on top of Magnus. “Gives it a tug.”

_“What?”_

“The controller, Magnus,” Toki said, correcting him with a mild glare.

“Toki, I don’t know,” Magnus said, feeling warm. He couldn’t tell if it was the coat, Toki, or dealing with the fact that his hands were literally being held through this mini lesson.

“Shh.” Toki was serious. “C’mon, gives it a try.”

Sighing. Magnus gripped the joystick. It was stiffer than he imagined it to be. He gave it a rough yank, and when he looked down, saw the wing’s flap turn downward.

“Okays, now the other ones,” Toki directed, leaning a bit more weight on top of him.

Magnus obeyed, turning the stick to the far right. The remote beeped. Why did it beep? Last Magnus checked, he wasn’t performing any tricks. “Why did it beep?” he asked, feeling his chest begin to tighten.

“You accidently lockst it." 

“Great.”

Toki gave him a little shake. “No, just means if it was flyinks, it only goes in that directions.”

Magnus still exhaled a long sigh, finding all the new information to be a bit too overwhelming for him. Then Toki’s hands fell right on top of his, and he gave him as gentle a squeeze as he could, not wanting to set the plane off. Magnus sighed again, this time shorter, and through the nose. Toki’s hands rubbed his, and even though Magnus wasn’t looking, knew Toki was watching him, waiting for him to calm down. He bit his inner lip, waiting for the prickle in his chest to subside, and for Toki to ask him if he was ready again, and pushed through the lesson with a short review. This ams the joystick what brings the aircraft ups and downs. This ims the one what moves it to the sides. Be gentles. The plane goes really fast. Don’t worries about the buttons. Yes, this ams on beginner’s mode.

“You readies to fly?” Toki asked, pulling his hands off from Magnus’ to squeeze his arms. 

The embrace sent a nice wave of confidence that almost convinced Magnus that he could, but the sudden release and lack of supportive warmth told him otherwise.

“I don’t want to break your toy,” Magnus announced, earning yet another squeeze from Toki.

“You wonts break it,” Toki said behind him. “And even if you dids, it cames with spare parts.” Another squeeze, only this time, it didn’t end. “It ims a toy, Magnus. It ims meant to be played with, okays?”

Magnus remained stiffly poised, eyeing the remote for a while and rejecting the idea he could maneuver the device without crashing it straight into a tree. Several seconds passed. Pressure vanished from one of his arms. Magnus shuddered when he caught a hand slipping over and pressing the power button on the remote, waking the controller and sending a shrill beep and rush of adrenaline straight into his veins. He wanted to shove the remote right back to Toki. Tell him this wasn’t his thing. It was a toy plane. He didn’t play with toys. A final squeeze signaled him it was time for liftoff and Magnus, biting down on his lip, gently pushed the joystick up.

The plane bounced up, taking flight for a few feet before nose diving right back to the grass, and bouncing back into place. Magnus knew why it happened. The second it flew he freaked out and he let go of the stick. And now it fell. And… that was all it was. Sure, Toki was rubbing his arms, telling him to try again, but after having watched it fall, Magnus felt relieved. It landed on the grass. It was okay, like Toki said it would be. Magnus pouted, embarrassed at himself for thinking it would be anything else aside from what Toki said. He calmed down, and tried again, and watched the plane roll a few inches before embarking its crooked flight.

“Hey, you dids it,” Toki whispered.

Magnus provided an unsteady nod, eyes locked on the wobbling plane that desperately needed to pick up speed. A hand cupped his right, and a finger tapped light against his, reminding him to turn. Without looking down, he delicately flicked the second joy stick, and the plane made a wide, sinking turn. Magnus frowned. He hurriedly glanced down, remembered the very basic directions given to him, and pushed more on the throttle. When he looked up, he saw the plane turn upwards, picking up speed as it ascended further into the sky.

“It ams flying, Magnus.” Toki grabbed him by the shoulder and gave him an enthusiastic shake.

Pulling in his bottom lip, Magnus gave a weak nod. “Yeah, it is,” he said after a second, letting the winds carry the plane for a few moments before remembering he needed to provide some direction. “It’s flying.”

It was mainly a straight line, but the plane was leveled. The wings were swaying anymore as it pierced through the sky, unwavering against the sudden brush of winds. Hands vanished from Magnus’ shoulder as he tried guiding the plane higher, increasing speed and cutting through the turbulence brought on by heavier gusts. Unmoving, Magnus trailed after the plane, watching silently as it carried itself further into the distance.

Behind him, he heard Toki cheer. “You ams flying the plane without Toki!”

“Yeah, I am,” he said, shaking his head at the heat that dared to push forth. He really didn’t want Toki seeing him blushing, but his laughter compelled him to turn and face him, basking in some of their shared glory. “I’m actually ha-”

“Don’t looks at me! Pay attentions to the plane!”

Right, the plane. “Right, got it!”

Magnus searched the skies and found it floating towards another field. Magnus took a few steps forward, eyes squinting to make out the plane before shifting its direction back to them. He kept its path on the incline though, wanting nothing more than to see how high it could go before the controller beeped, or flashed, or _whatever_. He continued to make small steps, following the plane as he pushed it further and further away, only to beckon it back when it was too small for him to pinpoint with his one eye.

“You ams doing a great job!”

It swirled and glimmered, a silvery comet that floated over the vast ocean. It was a tiny shuttle in space, headed in no particular direction, but Magnus’ own. It crossed invisible barrier Magnus set forth, dove downwards and played chicken with his mind, then curved and jumped right back up. Or not. Magnus blinked, watching it collide into the ground, blanketed by the tufts of grass, later crash into a dried bush filled with cobwebs, and later nosedive straight into an anthill. Each time they swapped roles Magnus felt a terrible sting when he handed Toki the remote, and a tinge of something hot when he saw Toki perform a loop, a barrel roll and, before the batteries died out, switched from beginner to intermediate. He tried a second time, then third, asking Toki which button did what, asking again how he got the plane to swerve the way he did, exhilarated whenever he got close to achieving each trick, and beaming when he finally got the stupid thing to loop when he asked it to. The plane soared across the sky, and while Magnus remained mostly silent, letting Toki do most of the “ooh-ing” and “aww-ing” for him, Magnus was nothing short of thrilled when his turn arrived, and jubilated whenever he managed something new before it ended.

Fun, he thought. Flying is really, _really_ fun.

* * *

“Magnus, I’m hungry,” Toki complained the second they walked in the apartment. Not even that; Magnus had walked into the apartment, Toki was still just outside of it.

“Yeah, well, it’ll have to wait,” Magnus said, peeling off his jacket and letting it hang by the door. “I have, like, five damn things I need to get done before I see Miss Holier-Than-Thou.”

“Which ones?” Toki asked, already headed into the living room. He placed the plane on top of coffee table, then placed the remote besides it. 

Magnus leaned on top of the sofa. “Like three sets of chores, two journal reflections–”

Toki paused. “You didn’ts do your journals?”

Magnus shrugged his response. “I was distracted,” he said, earning a slow, condescending nod from Toki. Magnus rolled his eyes at it. “You know me. I’ll be caught up in like, twenty minutes’ tops!”

“No, takes you time with thems,” Toki said with a pout. He went through his pockets, pulling out the faded wrinkled checklist. A brief feeling of shame arose, but quickly vanished as Magnus watched Toki grab a nearby pin and began hastily signing off the list of duties Magnus just said he would complete before the end of the day. Toki handed the turquoise sheet to Magnus. “Your reflekskins ams very important. Takes your time. Okays?”

Magnus wasn’t going to bother facing off against Toki. He took the sheet, but then walked around the couch, taking a seat next to Toki before dragging him into an embrace. “Alright, man. You win,” he said. “I’ll do the bathroom, clean the rest of the kitchen…”

“Lets me use the bathrooms first, okay?” Toki asked.

“Sure,” Magnus said, pressing his face into the man’s soft crown. Hair and too many hours under the sun wafted across his face, soothing Magnus into an accepting calm. Just what he needed before taking on the burden of household chores and silly mental reflections.

“Magnus. Bathroom.”

“Alright, love,” Magnus said, releasing his hold and snickering when Toki jumped up from the cushioned seat to race into the restroom. Magnus chuckled, watching that blue and brown blur nearly slip as he turned into the hallway.

Magnus rested his head atop the cushion. His hands fondled the worn edges turquoise sheet. After a while, he got tired of hiding, and Magnus lifted the sheet up, ready to count the completed few rows he managed this month, when his phone emitted a gentle mew.

That was Toki’s ringtone. Magnus leaned as far back as he could, glimpsing into the hallway and finding the door closed. Probably a joke, a text. At worse, a response to their ancient “poop deck” conversation. God, hopefully not a damn meme. Magnus pulled out his phone, face contorting when he saw the large number underneath the message. That was quite the file Toki sent. Great, another gif. A silly cat video. Something Toki would likely test him on, and because Magnus had everything signed off, had no choice but to watch. 

He opened their conversation, but froze the second he saw an image of himself standing amongst the greenery. No, he thought. Unmoving, Magnus’ eyes darted to the bathroom. That little–!

At the center was that horrific triangle taunting him to hit play. Magnus sank into his seat. His stomach turned. He didn’t want to, but knew he would. Toki would never leave until he did, the jerk!

Magnus held a breath and, with a shaking hand, hit play.

He saw the landscape turn crooked, shaking as its director backed away to record the scene. He saw the grass dance under a mild breeze, then saw the view lift, resting on him, back facing the camera.

 _“You ams flying the plane without Toki!”_ he heard Toki yell out to him. Magnus watched as his older counterpart stared up into the sky, face tense and deepening with color.

_“Yeah, I am.”_

God his hair was everywhere. And he sounded so meek when he said it. But then, there was a giggle, and the camera zoomed in. Magnus brought a hand to cover his mouth when the focus shifted, capturing that moment when his brows eased, the wrinkles around his mouth and eyes began to decrease. Him smiling, and just about to turn and face the camera.

“ _I’m actually ha-”_

The view dropped, returning to shadows and blades of drying grass. A finger covered part of his view.

_“Don’t looks at me! Pay attentions to the plane!”_

_“Right, got it!”_

Magnus waited, feeling a heavy lump start to form when Toki lifted his phone back up, resting it perfectly on him. The damn recording was mostly still, fixed on his relaxing shoulder, zooming in on his face, the mouth whose ends were twitching, eyes that flickered with joy as they followed the unseen plane. Magnus blinked, feeling tears roll down his face as he stared at this happier version of himself, a version he knew existed less than an hour ago, but had somehow already forgotten. He lifted his hand higher to wipe away the steady stream of tears, ridding of as much evidence as he could before he had to face Toki.

_“Hey, Magnus.”_

Oh, no. Magnus dropped his hand, and below, saw Toki’s crossed blue eyes peering through the camera.

 _“I’m sorries for tricking you.”_ Toki drew the camera away, giving up more of his happy, but guilt ridden face. Magnus sniffed, catching the younger man looking over his shoulder, vigilant of that version of Magnus, before dropping back into a whisper. “ _I wont signs number 33 if you don’t wants me too, ok? I know them rows means a lot to you. But I thinks your therapist would likes to see you trying somethings new, even if you don’t gets three of them in a months.”_

That old version of Toki shrugged, butting his lip before breaking into a nervous, almost melancholic smile. “ _Sorries if I hurt your feelings. But, cans you promise me you won’t deletes this?”_

Magnus’s vision blurred when he heard it. He nodded at the camera, at the anxious Toki already hatching his terrible plan to get him to keep this awful recording of him standing there, looking like a fool for donning a heavy black coat on a bright sunny day.

_“I wants you to keeps this, because look–”_

The camera turned, welcoming a flash of sunlight before settling on that old Magnus again, face now concentrated on the sky, on pushing the plane further, and the eyes that didn’t bother to hide that selfish desire to keep on flying.

_“You ams having so much funs right now.”_

Magnus gave another nod. He wiped his eyes, frantically trying to stop the tears with a rough rub from his wrist. He shut his eyes, swallowed the lump as far as he could, then blindly reached for the turquoise sheet. 

_“Magnus.”_

There was no point in trying to stop it. Heaving out a single cry, Magnus picked up the sheet, lifted himself up from the couch and, still holding the phone, stomped over to the bathroom to earn that final signature.

_“I ams proud of you.”_


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus buys toki a drink, and is very aware of the issues of change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really just wanted Magnus to be aware of the fact that Toki suffers from panic disorder and doesn't like coins. This is literally why this exists. 
> 
> Also, hey, they're trying to exercise now.

Early one morning, almost out of the blue, Toki suggested they spend more time engaging in healthier activities. Magnus was barely awake when Toki began his long, but affectionate speech of how neither of them were getting younger, and even though all that extra chow mein and sriracha hit the spot last night, it wasn’t mixing too well right now. The stomach cramps quaking through Magnus made it impartial to Toki’s plea. 

Toki trailed a finger down Magnus’ scar while he suggested a few small ways they could implement a better lifestyle without subtracting all the fun activities they did on the side. Both knew they had to take better care of themselves, but neither were quite willing to sacrifice the occasional drink, hit or midnight run. A few conversations carried on outside of the bedroom, into the kitchen and in the car, and Magnus agreed to a few ideas, admitting that, sooner or later, the free “one-ups” would run low.

“God of death be damned,” he muttered, “I’m still mortal.”

After putting it off for several days, the two finally initiated their weekend walks on the longest day of the year, smackdab in the middle of June. Neither put much thought as to what they should wear when exercising, with Toki sporting his usual shirt, dark denim jeans and boots, and Magnus that similar combo, save the jacket which he swapped for a dark, navy blue shirt. Even less thought went into the length of their walk (“We need to do at least three miles or it’s a waste of time,” Magnus complained whilst frantically fanning his burning neck), and no regard went towards keeping well-hydrated. 

They joked about their rushed attempt at exercising as a way to gauge their current strength, but after a few blocks both regretted waiting until noon to leave the house, and not bothering to bring sunblock or a rubber band for the rare breeze that died once it reached their weighted hair. Eventually there came a point where every few feet summoned a break from one of them, a need to stand under some shade and, more importantly, readjust body parts that stuck in places they preferred it not to.

They were two miles into their sorry journey when Magnus spotted one of those overpriced smoothie and juice bars. After a quick pat-down, he realized he had some money on him. He unraveled and fanned the upsettingly moist bill, and grinned once it revealed its value. A twenty. Though it was far from Magnus’ usual scene, he wasn’t going to refuse a cold drink in the middle of summer. 

He stopped Toki. “You got your insulin on you?” 

“Yeps, always do,” Toki answered. He took advantage of their unannounced break and lifted his shirt, fanning his abdomen with the still, hot air surrounding them. After a few futile attempts, he brought the shirt up higher and used it to wipe his face.

Magnus spotted the small case and grinned. “Let’s grab a drink,” he said, pointing at the shop. “My treat.”

Toki stopped wiping himself to stare at the windows hosting posters of yellow and purple smoothies, colorful chopped fruit salads and yogurt bowls covered with whipped cream and granola. The offer was incredibly tempting, especially now that Toki had settled and _definitely_ could feel all the moist parts of his body begin to simmer and stick together. He wore a small, promising smile, but still brought a thumb to his lip. “But we ams supposed to be makings healthier choices?”

Magnus could tell Toki wanted it. There was that adorable, hungry little sparkle in Toki’s eyes that suggested he only needed to say the right words to get him inside and order a drink. He just had to think of the right thing to say, and Toki would submit, dip inside that cool store and order all the creamy drinks their twenty could afford them. 

“Juice is made of fruit, Toki,” Magnus said, brushing off his concern with a slight snicker. “Fruit is healthy. They’re packed with vitamins. You said you wanted us to be healthier, right?”

“That ams true,” Toki muttered, bringing the thumb down to rub his chin as he contemplated whether he should succumb to the pleasures of a sweet, icy beverage. “But don’ts smoothies has lots of sugars in them? I thinks I recalls some dietiskans–”

“We can order something with a vegetable in it,” Magnus said, sliding an arm around Toki’s shoulder, and subtly guiding him to walk in the direction of the store. “Veggies have fiber. Fiber… eats up sugar. See, we’re good.” 

“Oh? Oh, well.” Toki gave a nod, finding the explanation satisfying enough. “Okays, that makes sense.” 

“Of course it does.” Magnus dropped his hold, and Toki continued on without his aide. “It’s because it’s true!” He grinned. Were it not for them both being so uncomfortably warm, he’d have taken Toki by the hand or wrist, and teased him more for being so concerned for their health. It was a charming little trait of Toki’s, but for once Magnus had everything under control. 

They were welcomed to a refreshing blast of cool, controlled air. Toki barely contained a moan when he stood by the entrance, soaking in the wonderful drop in temperature while Magnus tried to goad him into picking his drink. 

“I’m feeling tropical, how about you?” Magnus asked aloud, snickering when Toki bounced to his side, grabbing his cooling arms before pointing at the list of berry-inspired smoothies and shakes. 

Neither of them ordered a juice with a vegetable in it, both opting for something sweeter, thicker and less green in appearance. Magnus insisted that if there was a ton of fruit in it then it was still technically healthy. By that point, Toki barely cared, and asked if he could please have a medium instead of small. Magnus was more than willing to oblige. 

Magnus hung near the register, eager to pay and cool himself off with his order. Toki sat near the back of the store, choosing a table set near an air-conditioner to take in as much as he could enjoy before facing the hellscape outside. Both knew they couldn’t stay for long because, much like all the other important necessities, neither bothered to bring a hat. The shop was mostly contained. There was currently no need for a klokateer, and it didn’t seem like the employees recognized Toki while he was overheated and drenched in sweat, but neither wanted to deal with a crazed fan that could pop in at any moment.

A smiling, bubbly cashier handed Magnus two smoothies. He offered her the wrinkled twenty and then, without thinking, raised the pink one up towards Toki. 

“Hey,” he called out, then gave the cup a little teasing shake of the wrist right as Toki turned. He immediately perked up and left his seat, eager to snatch up that delectable treat waving in front of him. 

The cashier rang him up. “That’ll be ten thirty-five.”

Magnus paused at the sound of the register cracking open, and the loud clutter of change that spewed from its core. Thirty-five cents meant at least two quarters coming back, right? A dime and a nickel as well, assuming she didn’t have any pennies on her. He blinked, and became very aware of how close Toki was in proximity to him and the cashier. Overpriced or not, dealing with the change wasn’t worth the trouble. 

“Just the nine is fine,” he calmly announced, raising a free hand at her the moment she reached in to grab a selection of coins. “Keep the change.” 

“You sure?” she asked, but shut the register before Magnus could change his mind. Not that he would with Toki swooping in to grab his drink. Magnus turned and smiled, sliding to the side and covering the view of the register as Toki stabbed straw into his smoothie. He nursed the tip, eyes closing as he drew in the first taste, and then pushed Magnus, playfully rubbing against his hip as he drank before leaning the rest of him against his back. Magnus grinned, paying little mind to it as he held his arm in place, keeping it from exposing the price of the drinks. 

The cashier handed Magnus his change, save for the coinage. “Have a nice day.”

“You, too,” Magnus politely replied, then took his change and drink. He scooped Toki up with his smile, leading the two of them out without Toki ever taking notice of the price and lack of terror-inducing coinage. 

They sat outside of the juice bar for a while, relaxing under a table with a massive umbrella, and making the most of their beverages while each remained solid and icy cold. Magnus leaned back, shutting his eyes and enjoying the slightly painful tingle of a shocked nerve as he greedily consumed his smoothie. Toki sat across from him, happily devouring his drink and appearing immune to brain freeze.

“This was a goods idea,” Toki said after a warm breeze brushed between them.

“I’ve been known to have them on occasion.” Magnus kicked his leg up, resting his heels on top of the massive support underneath the table that held their umbrella in place. “Feel free to thank me whenever.”

Toki chuckled. “Thanks, Magnus. You ams the best boyfriends.” He shook his cup, sloshing the remains of his melting drink before downing it all in a few gulps. He wiped his mouth, licked his lips while he stood up to toss the cup into the bin. As he did, he stopped by Magnus' chair, had his fingers trail over the chair’s topmost metal rail before leaning down and pecking Magnus on the cheek. Pleased, Magnus hummed a low noise into his straw. Toki delved deeper, tickling Magnus’ jawline with his lips, then whispered into his ear, “And don’ts think I didn’ts notice what you did backs in there.”

Magnus stopped playing with his straw to open his eyes. Toki stood above him, grinning from cheek to cheek, looking bright and refreshed. He lowered and gave Magnus another, more affectionate kiss, this time hitting the mark and pressing his sweetened, strawberry flavored lips against Magnus’. Toki pulled away, eyes lidded and face carrying a less subtle crimson tint to it. The warm flurry that nestled across Magnus’ chest told him it had little to do with them being out of shape, or the atrocious weather. 

Feigning ignorance, Magnus shrugged. “What? I always tip,” he said, chest heaving out a restrained cackle once he caught Toki’s bubbly expression turn skeptical at the comment. “It’s called being polite.”


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toki has a really nice day. Like, nothing bad happens. He's just really happy here. 
> 
> also, hey, other metalocalypse characters. cool

Dethklok finished their summer touring across the states and parts of Canada and Mexico, before finally settling in California for the final three concerts. It was business as usual, though recent late night research with Charles and the Church ensured that this tour wasn’t nearly as dangerous and fatality-inducing as prior ones. Most of the members had something to say about the lack of accidental decapitations or disembowelment, but Toki was just relieved he could go through an entire concert without accidentally leading to someone’s untimely death.

Just before their second concert, Abigail mentioned a four day grace period. She cited that there would be time to take another break once they returned to Europe and finish some "important chores,” but that everyone could take advantage of the location and weather while here, and relax. Naturally, no one complained about four days of partying and passing out on some random California beach, and everyone thanked Abigail for supplying some mercy, unlike a certain robot manager.

“And you, Toki?” Abigail asked, waiting until Nathan pulled Skwisgaar and the others out of their shared dressing room.

“What?” Toki asked, pulling himself away from the mirror once he was finished applying his makeup. He grabbed his guitar by the neck, ready to catch up with the others, when he noticed Abigail carrying a more formal demeanor.

“Would you like me to send some klokateers to pick up Magnus?”

Toki didn’t believe it when he heard it. He almost thought it was a joke, too, until he remembered this was Abigail talking to him, not Pickles or Murderface.

“Wait, ams you serious?” Toki asked, voice cracking from the disbelief. His grip on his guitar weakened, and the neck began to slip down his hand as Abigail gave a brief, but firm nod before raising a finger at her assistant.

“Well, you were going to ask him to come anyways, right?” she replied in a professional voice, then fixed some of the uneven coating of makeup applied to the corner of his face. “If I send some men now, you two can get an extra day before heading back to Mordhaus to train those powers of yours.”

“Training?” Toki’s face wrinkled at the word. “We ams doing that again?”

“I promised Charles custody for the next two weeks,” Abigail answered with a weak laugh. “Don’t tell the others just yet. I want to have them on my good side for as long as I can.” Her assistant turned to her, silently gesturing to his phone. “Right,” she said, and her short-lived smile vanished, and Abigail returned to that managerial version that refused to give away too much. “So, Magnus?”

“Oh.” The guitar slipped further as he tried to focus solely on the question, and not Abigail and her being the one to ask for permission. “Well, if you ams ok,” he said, shrinking from her once he caught her eyes staring directly into his. He didn’t mean to, but the magnitude of the situation, of Abigail coming forth and asking, refused to relinquish its grip on Toki. “I means, I’d really likes it if you dids that, Abigails.”

“Of course.” She gave another nod, and her assistant left the room to make the necessary calls. Toki chewed on his inner cheek when he watched the assistant leave, unsure if he should thank Abigail, or pretend this was yet another normal occurrence. Then, Abigail gestured at the open door. “Well then, you have a concert in less than ten minutes.”

“Rights!” Toki said with a sudden burst of esteemed confidence, then picked up his guitar strap and hurried out of the room, slowing only momentarily as he considered a last minute “thanks,” but dropped it in favor of maintaining the peace Abigail had elegantly established.

He only messed up three times that night, screwing up the rhythm with random bouts of uncontrolled excitement. Toki didn’t mean to, but he couldn’t quite get Abigail and her suggestion out of his head, and that wonderful promise that came attached to it. Skwisgaar’s usual criticisms aside, no else seemed to notice or care about his playing, and when Toki returned to the dressing room for a quick clean up, saw that he had a message from Magnus waiting for him. Like every text from Magnus, it was quick and to the point, but Toki lingered on it for some time, fighting that urge to let Magnus know Abigail was the one to set the arrangements, but decided against it out of some inexplicable fear that he might jinx it. He sent some smiles, kisses and hearts, and a few cute gifs and asked Magnus to wake up early and be ready for pick up as soon as the gears arrived, then returned to the band for their upcoming encore and fireworks-slash-missile launch to end the show.

* * *

Magnus arrived in the hotel lobby the following evening, just hours before the final concert. The band was on their way out to the stadium, but after nearly three long months of near-constant traveling, rehearsing and playing, there was little stopping Toki from seizing Magnus into a tight embrace, and even less restraint on Magnus’ behalf when he returned that selfish hug with one of his own. It took three klokateers reminding Magnus that Lord Wartooth had a concert to attend, and even then, took some snide remarks from Nathan to finally get the two to peel each other off from one another.

“I’ll sees you really soons.” Toki promised, nabbing Magnus’ hand before their departure to enforce a sacred pinky swear. “Until thens, be goods and tries not to tease them servants too much.”

Magnus’ pinky finger curled around his. “I’ll do my best,” he replied, rewarding Toki a simple, but elegant smile that filled him with a bountiful amount of new energy. “Take care, alright?”

“Yeah.” Toki stared dreamingly at their intertwined fingers, smile wide and stupid from the mere contact. A few members of Dethklok passed them by, making no remarks while Toki fished through an assortment of cheesy one-liners before inching up to Magnus and whispering a few promises for when they officially reunited. Magnus’ face warmed against his own, and even though Skwisgaar and Pickles were watching, eyes rolling and arms crossed at the deferment of their journey, Toki still determined a kiss was in order and pressed his lips greedily against Magnus’.

“Alright, I’ve seen enough,” Murderface grumbled, then started off to the front doors. “If you need me, I’ll be in the limo.”

Pickles waited about two seconds before rudely proclaiming, “Can’t believe I gotta be the one to say it, but let’s go! Chop-chop!”

It took Nathan shouting at the entrance to pull Toki away from Magnus. He stood by the front doors, glaring patiently at the two before finally loudly shouting, “Toki! Get your gay butt in the limo!” and then yanking Toki by the shoulder once he was close enough, and finally pushing him into the limo once they were out of the hotel.

Few remarks were made on the way to the stadium. There was the usual “that was gay” diatribe that Toki was already so accustomed to, but even that was cut short by Pickles turning his attention towards the small chance Charles might arrive and greet them after the concert on a job well done (Toki didn’t have the heart to tell him Charles was planning to force them all back to the Church once this was over), and a train of several other conversations that effectively buried Magnus from everyone’s mind. No nasty comments, jokes or reminders that Magnus wasn’t always a nice guy, and no one threw any curious or questionable glances at Toki's way. Everyone acted as they were, with each member becoming the focus of everyone else’s ridicule at some points until they reached the back of the stadium.

The concert went better than the last, though this time a klokateer accidentally tripped over an unsupervised wire, resulting in it snapping, sending out a whip of electrical currents and killing maybe a dozen or so fans, and an unknown amount of gears. The low numbers meant cleanup was fast, and the moment Abigail told them all they were officially finished with the tour, Toki begged for a ride back to the hotel, opting to skip out on the partying.

“You am sure you wants to goes to the hotels early?” Skwisgaar asked while Toki threw several bags into the arms of a klokateer. “It ims barely ones in the mornings?”

“Yeps!” Toki was quick on his feet, trying to outpace Skwisgaar in the off chance he might attempt to push Magnus off for the night. It wasn’t his intention to be rude, but Toki didn’t want to try and defend his reason for leaving earlier than normal. He already spent nearly three months awake until the crack of dawn, smoking for drinking whatever was tossed his way. Another night of getting stoned couldn’t be weighed against reuniting with Magnus, especially with training coming right after. 

“Oh, wells.” Skwisgaar returned to his mirror to continue wiping some of his makeup from his face. “Hab funs then.”

Toki stopped at the door, a mistake that would normally award him with a surprise attack from Skwisgaar. He waited for an additional remark, but turned around and saw Skwisgaar attending to his brows, concentrating on removing as much heavy makeup to spare his pores future agony.

“Thanks,” Toki said, but his voice was too soft to be heard through Murderface screaming at Pickles for stealing the last canister of Pringles from the table.

The ride back to the hotel lasted longer than the ride to the stadium. Toki chalked it up to excitement, but it soon was apparent there was more to it than nerves. Without the rest of the band in the limo it was quiet, and the effects of a long, successful tour was now starting to hit him. Exhaustion kicked in shortly after exiting the freeway, and by the time Toki arrived at the hotel, was fighting to stay awake.

Toki asked the klokateers to just leave his things and stay out of the way for the rest of the night. He couldn’t think of a reason why he'd need, or want them around. He passed through the hotel unceremoniously, rubbing his heavy eyelids all the way up the elevator until he convinced himself he wasn’t tired, then into the dimly lit hallway before finally reaching his door.

He found Magnus asleep on the bed, still clothed and spread across the top sheets in a failed attempt to power through the wait. Toki smiled at the scene, then went to fix a few strands of stray hair. Magnus grumbled a sound, then turned more on his side, back to Toki. A bed never looked so tempting. Toki wanted to jump right in, wrap his tired arms around Magnus’ lithe frame and settle himself against his back. Or maybe wake Magnus up just long enough for them to get under the sheets, and let Magnus ensnare and hold him, later fall asleep on top of Toki. Either would've been equally satisfying, but he still needed to shower and get rid of several hours of rehearsal and performing in front of a rabid crowd of fans.

Toki gave Magnus a little pat, then turned for the bathroom. He stripped down on the journey over, nearly tripping over one of his pants’ legs and waking Magnus up in the process, but somehow only caused the man to grunt a complaint. Door closed, Toki turned on the bathroom light, covering a swear once the bright, blinding flare hit him. His aching muscles demanded a soak, but Toki had a sense he’d end up drowning if he tried for a bath at this hour.

He left the bathroom refreshed, and alert enough to recognize the more entertaining features of having an entire hotel floor and boyfriend all to himself. Toki was quite thankful for it, too, because when he exited, saw that there was a light emitting from the bedroom.

Toki found Magnus sitting at the edge of the bed, jacket and jeans traded in for a more fitting shirt and loose bottoms. He dragged a hand across his forehead, rubbing it soothingly while giving Toki a tired “come hither” curl of the finger. Toki didn’t need any more convincing, and pounced on the man, pushing him down to the bed while working his hands up his neck and jawline. He kissed his lower lip, missing the top half when they fell on the bed, but Magnus corrected him right after they parted, guiding Toki into a perfect kiss before going sloppy again. Toki slipped off from Magnus, falling to his side, only to snatch him up in a selfish hug.

“Hey.” Toki rubbed his soft cheeks against Magnus’ stubble, not realizing just how much he missed the sharp bristle, the large hands reaching for him, and Magnus sighing under his every command until now. “Thanks for comins.”

A hand rested on Toki’s lower back. “Wouldn’t miss it,” Magnus said, then snickered right when Toki brushed a leg over his. “Someone’s happy to see me.”

Toki chuckled into his neck. “You ams surprised?”

Magnus laced his hand through Toki’s damp hair. “Figured you’d be exhausted after all that playing.”

“What? I ams not that tired! I haves plenty of energy.” Toki nuzzled further, breathing in the warm scent of Magnus’ hair and flesh. It soothed him, lulled him into a comforting space. It did no favors for anything elsewhere, but Toki wasn’t going to let exhaustion get the better of him. “How abouts you though, olds man?” he whispered, smiling shifting into a smirk when he felt a shift in Magnus' breath.

“Gonna be like that, huh?”

“Would you haves it any other ways?” Toki asked, teasing Magnus with the draw of his lips, then pulled away once Magnus tried for the bait. Magnus halted, eyes agape in false offense. Then came a giggle, a hand reaching for the lights, while another set scampered to rearrange the sheets. The darkness followed, and Toki was hit with that immediate desire to sink into the mattress and let sleep consume him, but Magnus kept him alert long enough to enjoy that intimacy he hadn’t forgotten, but desperately needed to feel, to reacquaint and let him know he wasn’t dreaming just yet.

A dream. Toki snuggled into his blanket, careful not to move too much as to not wake Magnus. He stared into the night, eyelids sinking further with every blink, but holding on long enough to relive that startling moment where Abigail asked if wanted to invite Magnus over now and earn that extra day, and that nice drive when everyone was so cordial and not calling him names for getting so happy when Magnus arrived, and finally with Skwisgaar telling him to have fun instead of getting wasted. A gentle pain swelled inside Toki’s chest, stirring and causing a mild struggle for an even breath, but otherwise leaving him more content than distressed. Is this what being supported felt like? Is that what this pain was, this thrill? 

He knew he shouldn't dwell too long on it, because if he did, he might start to get emotional, give way to some delighted, but equally frantic tears. Magnus wouldn’t understand, and even if he did, Toki didn't want their vacation to start with something as uncool as crying.

Arms creased around him, giving Toki a gentle squeeze, and whatever doubt he had of this being a fantasy perished into the darkness. The pain ceased, and Toki remembered that he had four whole days to do whatever he wanted, and now he was lucky enough to do it without anyone saying anything mean about it. 

His breathing calmed, and Toki shut his eyes, giving way to soft, sluggish melodies that arose from his mind, slipping into the folds of blankets and Magnus’ gentle exhales.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Toki and Magnus leave Florida.
> 
> Post Galaktikon 2 setting.

It was a nice house. Not the largest, Toki mentioned when they had first considered it, but after exploring its snug interior, grew fond of its narrow spiral stairwell leading to the second floor, along with the “little cubbies” tunneled in the walls of the halls and living room. Toki loved the wooden flooring; the first thing he did was contrast it against the cold stones that made up Mordhaus, and smile wide when he pressed his shoes against a particularly old floorboard and heard it groan under his weight. Magnus should’ve realized by then this would be the house. If not the quaint neighborhood, the lush greenery, streets leading up and down and around, and the snug wall compartments, then the fact that the house was a fixer-upper would no doubt sell itself to Toki. If Magnus knew anything, it was that Toki enjoyed improving upon old, decrepit things.

Magnus’ attention hardly left Toki’s, and he tried recapturing the same images the younger man described when following him up the cramped stairway, into a hallway splitting into two bedrooms and a bathroom, and each one emitting some fond warmth from the midday sun leaking through the windows. While Toki surveyed the bathroom, Magnus homed in on the quaint, but light atmosphere. There were quite a few windows, a nice addition to have considering Magnus couldn’t fathom what the hell he’d be doing if they settled in California. He could see himself easily sequestered inside all day if the lighting was well enough, though once Toki got word of all the nearby parks and trails, almost cut the tour short to better judge the surrounding entertainment. When they were outside again, some concern arose when Toki pointed out the fact that everything was set on a hill, and that Magnus would have to take the stairs just to get inside. Magnus watched Toki’s face wrinkle and pout with minor concerns for his well being, and, for whatever reason, Magnus could only stare up at the small house, thinking he could make it work, could take the stairs inside of the garage, or, if it came to it, take the side entrance and enter through the cramped, but leveled backyard. They’d have to hire someone to cut the shrubbery to get better access to the gate, but it could work.

“It could work,” he said, after weighing Toki’s excitement against other tours, and determining this place the best.

“Thinks so?” Toki eyed the weathered roof and chimney hosting a murder of crows. “Ams smaller than Skwisgaar’s house.”

Magnus shrugged. “Do we want to compare ourselves to a man fostering a dozen of his own neglected miscreants at a given moment?”

“No,” he replied dutifully, smiling at the silliness of Magnus’ remark. He brushed against Magnus, scooping and interweaving their hands in a tight, comforting clasp before asking, “but does _you_ likes it?”

Magnus glanced at the neighborhood. It was nicer than what he was accustomed to, and yet, still was a stark contrast to what he had fantasized a lifetime ago, when he assumed he’d be the famous one buying up multiple properties. But as he stared at it longer, Magnus envisioned Toki getting lost in the greenery, feeding strays, poking at burning logs in the fireplace, and goading him to exit the side window in the smaller of the two bedroom so that they could sit on top of the roof and watch the sun set.

“Yeah,” he said after some thought, and once it was out there, came the oddest, but fulfilling sense of relief for having said it.

Since then, that wonderful awareness had grown, unfortunately intermingling with his anxiety and forethought for the next two months, but never leaving Magnus doubting that he made the wrong choice. Concerns for work arose. Even with Toki bringing up his monthly hero’s pension and royalties, Magnus thought about how he’d spend his free time, be productive or of some use. He had to do something with himself once they settled. Then there was the stress of uprooting several years of his so-called “life,” ridding of the old to make room for the new, hiring movers and a van, the detrimental “unknown” that awaited them once Toki decided he wanted to drive their things across the states instead of flying there as they had done before. Finally, there was the fact that Magnus would eventually be moving again, this time with another person in tow.

Now there was a thought.

After departing from Dethklok, Magnus left Florida and resided wherever he could, usually for several months before either running out of funds, getting fired, or tiring of his current location. On the few, rare occasions where he managed to hold a job longer than 6 months, Magnus would last a year situated in some hole before dropping everything and deciding to relocate to “a place” that was more conductive to his lifestyle, that promised new opportunities for his always upcoming success, or at least wouldn’t bring up and force him to rely upon the knowledge that he once worked with Dethklok. His return to the state was only supposed to be temporary, two years at most while he sorted and planned for his supposed revenge. Magnus never expected that he’d end up spending several years in Florida, watching the wrinkles lining his face sink deeper, the brown curls go gray and his plans go awry and obsession for revenge dwindle and diagnosed, his anger accounted and acknowledged, and his perpetual emptiness filled with hugs and words of enthusiasm.

How a single person could have that effect on his life was still difficult to comprehend. Some days, Magnus chalked it up to god powers, but those had long since passed, replaced only with the promise of an eventual return and future adventures that continued to reassure that, perhaps, maybe things could be solved with unconditional love. Toki often said it was more than just his words and their ventures, and followed up with a nudge, a suggestive smile, a damn finger pointed straight at Magnus himself.

Magnus never moved such a great distance with another person before, much less someone of such massive significance. He wanted their home to be as close to perfect as possible; moreover, wanted to feel good about it.

Watching Toki stare out the passenger window of their rented car, pointing at various pizza locations, cafes and other curiosities brought a sense he had made the right decision.

* * *

As was their custom, packing was saved until the very last minute. Fifty-six days passed without warning, leaving Magnus to wake up late one morning and realize they had only about three days to rent a van and stow everything of value within it before the deadline.

He imagined it being difficult. The last time he moved, it was hell on earth.

This move proved to be difficult, though Magnus quickly picked up that the reason behind his struggle had less to do with emotional attachment, and more with the chaos that was trying to rush through a week’s worth of tasks in just three days. There were those random bouts of anxiety, seconds where Magnus would halt, stare at some old sketchbooks or journals and wonder if it was worth the effort. The doubt never lasted too long. Those irritable voices did not arise, though he moved slower than he preferred. Toki handled it better, as usual. He turned it into a game, goading Magnus with a point system that made less and less sense as the day proceeded. Sometime after noon, Toki began posting progress pictures of their disorganized move, and Magnus had to shut off his phone with the increasing rate of notifications.

It was late in the evening when they collapsed on top of the sofa, arms and backs sore, only to survey their work and sadly admit they needed help.

“Why not call William?” Magnus asked as he hungrily tore through his second slice of pizza. A long string of cheese hung down his chin as he chewed. “That’ll speed things up.”

Toki sat in the corner of the cushion, legs pressed to his chest as he viewed comments and notes from his updates. He pointed at his phone’s screen. “I cans makes a requests on my apps and gets helps for free?”

Although Dethklok officially disbanded, there were still quite a few dedicated fans, life-long committed klokateers, and a growing number of religious fanatics who were more than willing to assist with the move, with some even offering to take the long drive across the states just to move the furniture for them.

Magnus glanced at the thousands of offerings taking the form of likes and incomprehensible emojis.

He frowned. “For _free_ , Toki?”

An incredulous stare. “Was you gonna pays Murderface?”

Magnus hid behind his half-consumed pizza. “That’s different. He’s our friend.”

They compromised and decided to do both. It turned out to work well in their favor. Having another member of Dethklok made sending out ridiculous orders easier, and the volunteers were more than willing to comply. When Magnus saw their numbers, he assumed today would be the day he broke. With this many people, he’d end up ruining everything with a snap. Get pissed. Angry. Exhausted. William proved a necessary distraction. If he wasn’t bossing people around with a surprisingly organized set of demands, he was pulling Magnus aside, and they’d spend the greater deal of their time together conversing over meaningless things. And because William was so good at directing, Magnus found he had little to worry over, as he soon discovered that Toki took charge of packing some of his more sacred articles. Leave it to Toki to pick up the slack on his behalf, though Magnus did make sure to let his man know he was thankful for overseeing his belongings, instead of allowing some stranger to go through it. He wasn’t sure when Murderface became well-versed in reading the room, but picked up when Magnus had to leave, return to his bedroom and find Toki folding tapestries and bedsheets, or carefully wrapping a bleached skull or snow globe with newspaper before tucking it into one of the labeled boxes.

Sometimes after four, Toki and Murderface pulled Magnus from a near-emptied bedroom, and the three left to get food. Magnus pointed at the dozen or so volunteers organizing and boxing their remaining books and kitchenware. Both Toki and Murderface insisted it wouldn’t be an issue, and after some coaxing, Magnus decided to tag along, and even offered to be the one to drive.

They hit up a place not too far from the apartment. A joint that served some unbelievable chili fries mozzarella sticks, which happened to be what Murderface was craving most. Magnus nursed an ice tea, eyes lidded as he paid little mind to the conversation shared mainly between Toki and Murderface. Midway through a chat about pissing off gators, Toki brought up the dreaded “I’ll miss yous” to Murderface, and as Murderface went to console and assure Toki they’d still hang out, that he’d make the trip to visit them in the west, and that there was always online gaming and social media, Magnus realized he didn’t quite share the sentiments. He was only struck with the melancholic dread once Toki started to get emotional. Magnus smiled and reminded him everything would be fine, but didn’t feel nearly as bad as either Toki or Murderface did when they finally parted later that night.

When they returned, they discovered the van was nearly filled, and when Magnus and Toki entered the living room, saw the near-barren interior of the apartment. As Toki informed the remaining volunteers of what needed to be moved tomorrow, and in what order, Magnus surveyed the rooms, hands resting on wall space where movie poster once lay, gruesome painting he and Toki either bought or manifested on their own accord, and the few hidden sketches he had started, but never completed. Once they left, someone would paint over the fades skulls and seraphim, and while it brought a tender sense of failure, did not compare to the greater rush he experienced once he opened the door to his bedroom and saw the crooked blinds leaking stretched evening light unto a mattress, bedsheets, and backpacks filled with the essentials.

Nearly everything else was gone.

“Ams you ok?” Toki whispered into his chest late at night.

Magnus lay on top his sore back, staring at the revolving fan that was helping lull his exhausted body to rest. Toki resting on top of him, constantly readjusting and rewrapping his arms around his arm, chest, neck and etcetera, kept Magnus from sinking any further.

He pet Toki’s head. “I’m fine.”

“You sures?”

“Yeah,” he muttered. His eyes closed, and he felt the pillow against his sinking consciousness. “Something you want to tell me?”

Another squirm from Toki. “Nopes,” he said into Magnus, then slipped to the side. Eyes still closed, and body starting to ache, Magnus didn’t fight when Toki pulled him into a spoon. “Just wants to makes sure you ams not stressed.”

Magnus woke up late on the final day to the grating sounds of large furniture being lugged down the stairs of their apartment. Toki was still beside him, holding on to him like lifebuoy against a raging storm, and when Magnus slipped out of that hungry grip, saw the pinkish swell around the younger man’s eyes. It never occurred to him that Toki might also be affected by the move. There was hardly a thing left in the bedroom, but Magnus gathered up the rest of the sheets on his side and stowed them into Toki’s arms, waited until Toki reflexively snatched it all up, shifted and rolled into a soft nest, then left the to complete the as much of the move on his own.

Whatever orders Toki fed the volunteers before were carefully being enacted. The only thing left in the bathroom were the toothbrushes and paste. Hallways and closets were empty, and once Magnus entered the living room and shot a testing stare at those who failed to meet his “shut the fuck up” standards, looked around and realized there were no more boxes left. As he exited the apartment to fetch Toki something both nutritionally and emotionally substantial, Magnus gave the ones who had slipped and bumped their fridge on the stair’s railway one single and final warning, and then departed.

Toki was still asleep when he arrived with breakfast, and only started to stir when Magnus returned to the bedroom with toilet paper napkins and a single plastic cup of water. Toki opened his dry, reddened eyes when Magnus popped open a Styrofoam tray and let the smell of eggs, bacon and hotcakes waft in the air.

Toki sank into the blanket, contracting into a fetal position before finally breaking into an elongated stretch and whine. “What times?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Magnus said, picking up the fanny pack filled with insulin and offering it to Toki. “Your stooges are getting the work done.”

Toki slowly dragged himself to the edge of the mattress. “What ams this?”

Magnus popped a lid from one of the cups filled with sugar free syrup. “Something sweet, for my sweet,” he answered, not surprised when he saw Toki’s head sink at the tray of food, at the insulin case situated nearby, and then rise and pout at the emptiness of the room.

“Thanks you,” he said, sliding up and taking the case into his hands.

“You know, you can stay in here for a while,” Magnus said, pouring the syrups all over the pancakes and eggs. “If you need to.”

“Whats about you?”

“I’ll be ok.” Magnus jabbed a knife into the eggs, stirring it into the syrup before taking a bite of it. “I’m sure I can boss around the remaining workers just fine without you.”

Toki looked down at the pooling sheets around his hips. “What’s about the beds?”

“I’ll tell ‘em it’s the last to go,” Magnus said, then took another shovel-full of sticky eggs into his fork before offering it to Toki. “Come on, we got a long day ahead.”

He smiled when Toki leaned in and took the morsel into his mouth, eyes closing at the taste of eggs and syrup.

“Last days,” he muttered a few chews afterwards.

“Yeah.” Magnus dwelled on the day ahead. Once everything was packed, they’d spend the night in the living room, sleeping on top of sleeping bags and under glow-in-the-dark stars, and early tomorrow morning, would make the long drive to California. It was settled between them that they’d have an ex-gear drive the van and organize the unpacking while they enjoyed the scenery. Magnus cut up slices of pancakes and served pieces to Toki as he went on about the long drives he took when he was younger, as a runaway, a member of Dethklok or some other band, or, more often than not, just alone and on his own.

“You won’ts be alones this time, thoughs,” Toki mentioned, brushing his sweet-smelling face against Magnus.

“No, I won’t,” Magnus replied, turning and meeting a syrup-stained smile. “Not unless I forget to take you along.” That remark earned a mean pout, but Magnus went ahead and snatched a tasty kiss from it despite the mild complaint he earned. He licked Toki’s lips, feeling the man go soft under him, and pulled him close into an embrace. He listened to Toki sigh under him. “Get some rest, ok?”

Anxiety arose once he was on his own, but Toki’s orders from last night proved to be effective enough. It took only an hour for the remainder of the larger pieces of furniture to be cast out of the apartment, and by that point, Toki had willed himself the strength to exit the bedroom. It took less than fifteen minutes for the sheets and mattress to get hauled in the van, another thirty more for Magnus to review the quickest route to California, the expectations and where he expected everything to be placed before their arrival. Magnus watched, alone, as the van left the parking lot, drove down the short street before making at turn and vanishing from sight.

He found Toki staring out the window, expressionless.

“How about we go see a movie?” Magnus said the moment he walked through the door and found Toki standing in the middle of the empty living room.

Toki tore his eyes from the ceiling littered with the remains of old plastic stars. He latched himself on to Magnus, smiling under the array of kisses awarded to him as they made their way out the door. Magnus didn’t feel the grip on him lessen until they reached his car, and even then, knew Toki was making a final glance at the apartment as he made the turn into the street.

Luckily enough there was some stupid heist film that proved distracting enough. A god awful, predictable plot always brought out the worst in them, and he managed to keep Toki commentating and rolling his eyes at any non-action oriented scene, weaving new conversations while pissing off their surrounding neighbors with groans, popcorn and fingers aimed at the screen. An hour teetered by, and when the movie ended and they headed towards the front of the theater, Magnus saw the time, and quickly thought of a few more activities they could accomplish before they had to leave.

He glanced down at Toki’s sneakers. “Let’s get some boots.”

“What fors?”

“To go hiking.”

Toki turned. “You wants to go hikings?”

“The trail by the park, way up north?” Magnus pulled out his keys, giving the chain a twirl with a finger. “I took you there once, a while back. You, uh, wanna give it a final go? Maybe check out the scenery? Feed the geese?”

He was confident he had sold Toki the moment he mentioned the park, but went on as they made their way to the car, eating up the bounce in Toki’s step, and Toki telling him they had to break in their boots first, and that bread wasn’t good for the ducks, but they could buy some frozen peas on the way over, and that there was a gentler hike for families at the same park.

They picked up drinks and snacks along the way to go with their peas, and by the time they arrived, were met with the crisp bite of late afternoon winds. Toki fed his ducks and geese, and Magnus, just a few feet behind, relished in the scenery, and took a few hidden snapshots before being struck with some nostalgia. Magnus’s thumb wavered over the stills of Toki surrounded by small birds and recounted prior times Toki suggested they go out and hike, or just try for a nice walk. Magnus made a point to promise himself he’d do better once they settled. California was warmer, after all. It had beaches and mountains, and he’d be foolish to spend all day hidden in his room, afraid to explore.

Despite Toki’s suggestion for the easier hike around the hill, Magnus opted to try the more challenging route and hike up it, taking their small plastic bag filled with chips, string cheeses, iced teas and other delights. The walk only proved to be mildly unbearable. With Toki always just a few steps ahead, pointing at resting bird, loudly pondering the chance of coming across a coyote or mountain lion at this hour (“No, Toki, and let’s hope it stays that way.”), or if they should take some photos as they proceed up the steepening hill, Magnus made it the whole way without hardly a complaint from his side. He still had to wipe sweat off his brow, and needed to hoard an entire bottle of tea once it was over, but when they finally reached the top, had a decent view of the park and a portion of the city beneath to view as they dined and listened to music on Toki’s phone.

The sun started to set not much later, and when Magnus finally tore Toki away from a bottle of sangria to watch the setting sun, felt that same relief from before begging to bubble as Toki leaned against him, arm in arm while they watched the view from the edge of a cliff.

“Wowee.” Toki tugged his boyfriend’s arm. “Ams really nice, Magnus.”

“Yeah.”

Magnus pulled Toki a half embrace, listening to Toki’s sigh as he stared down at the shrubbery, the tops of trees, and the break of green that was the park beneath.

“Magnus?” he heard Toki murmur into the cooling breeze. “Thanks for takins me out todays.”

Magnus pressed his face into Toki’s hair, breathing in a sweet conditioner and a sprinkle of sweat. Toki shifted, and Magnus felt the tickle of Toki’s facial hair and lips brush over his own before letting the younger man lead him into a kiss. The mid-evening sunlight left behind a delicate, orange glow that made closing their eyes easier, warmed their faces upon contact, and left the two eager to remain close, even after parting for a breath and shared smile.

“Thanks for keeping me in check for the first two days,” Magnus said after some time.

“No problems.”

“You know. It’s funny,” Magnus went on. The sun continued to slope down the skies, getting covered by drifting clouds and casting a rich shade of merigold across the sky. Magnus sighed at the sight. “I thought this would get to me more, but… I’m _relieved_. I’m really glad I’m finally leaving this place…”

Toki’s arm wrapped around Magnus’ waist. “You ams happy to be goinks away?”

The ends of Magnus’ mouth pulled upwards into a grin. He hoped Toki wouldn’t take it the wrong way, but still found it hard to match his levels of distraught and anxiety.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Magnus said. “I have a lot of great memories here. I have _you_.”

Toki moved closer. Magnus glanced down at a distant freeway. His arm fixed itself around Toki’s waist as he joined him in the silence. Toki pitney nursed his drink, giving Magnus the time to process his thoughts.

“Is it weird?” Magnus asked, not looking away from the gorgeous scenery. “To be relieved?”

“No. Makes perfect sense. Movins on.”

Hearing it from Toki made it sound natural. Moving on. Away from an assortment of wonderful adventures and activities spent with Toki, but also more than his share of dreaded afternoons hidden under the covers, hating himself, or hating Dethklok. But, while looking towards the orangey sky, Magnus knew him leaving the state had a far greater significance than simply further distancing himself from the band. With Skwisgaar spending half his time abroad, and Pickles moving eastward with that annoying manager of his, creating space away from Dethklok was the least of his worries. It was moving on, towards something new, and with nothing stopping him or holding him down. It was just him leaving, starting over, and with the most important person in his life.

“I love you, Toki.”

The wind blew something sweet smelling in the air. Magnus registered the calming scent brought on by the evening winds, and knowing this was the last time he’d ever experienced it, committed it to memory. He would remember it, along the rich shade of tangerine and golden swell of the sinking sun, Toki picking himself up, reaching to fix Magnus’ jacket, thumb rolling over the base of his goatee, then bringing himself closer and pressing a gentle kiss on top Magnus’ lips.

“Loves you, too, Magnus,” Toki replied, leaving behind the subtle taste of sweet soda and grapes that, like everything else, Magnus would never forget.

* * *

It was getting dark when they finally turned tail for the car. When they reached the vehicle, Toki had his phone out to serve as a flashlight to help guide him and Magnus through the overcast shadows of clouds and heavy, swaying branches.

The drive back to the apartment was quick. The two hardly noticed they had arrived until Magnus slowed into the neighborhood, and spotted the bland, worn down building located at the far end of the street. When they entered the apartment, there was just the low, iridescent glow of plastic stars that stuck to the ceiling. Magnus flicked the light on, and when he turned, found Toki staring at their sleeping bags and backpacks settled where their sofa once lay.

“Toki?”

“This really ams it,” Toki muttered, approaching the depressing scene. Toki went silent as he bent down and dropped on top of one of the sleeping bags. “Last nights at this apartments…”

“Yeah.” Magnus looked around, once again spotting the shapes were movie posters and picture frames hung, faded sketches that he kept hidden from plain sight with furniture, and bits and pieces of garbage and coins left behind from the move. A dull pain etched into his chest, scraping down his lungs as he dropped next to Toki, rolled onto his back, and looked up at the ceiling.

He waited a minute, testing Toki’s silence, regarding it as a mere coping mechanism, and carefully took the younger man’s hand into his own.

“Magnus?”

“Yeah?”

Without tearing from the ceiling, Toki asked, “What if we leaves right nows?”

“What do you mean?”

His bottom lip trembled. “Toki doesn’t wants to sleeps in empty apartments. Not afters such a good days…”

It was hard to see Toki so sullen. Magnus nudged closer, using the sleeping bag underneath to slide close and pull Toki into a snug embrace. “I hear you, but it _was_ a long day.”

“Ams willing to drinks coffee and helps drive,” Toki said, turning and meeting Magnus with eyes filled with resolve. “I wants to drive.”

Magnus sighed. “I don’t know–”

“We gots to see the suns sets tonights.” Toki pulled in his bottom lip, face brimming pink as he peered up at the older man with a messy, lopsided smile. “We watched the suns sets in Florida, so why nots watch it rise in another states?”

He had effectively swapped the determination for that infamous, puppy-eyed pout that Magnus knew he couldn’t refuse. He understood that it was less the sunrise Toki wanted, and more to get away from sleeping in a shell of an apartment. The more he dwelled on it, the more Magnus sided with the idea, as ridiculous as it was. He already spent all day eating out, what was a cup of coffee to add to the mix? And they only needed to last as long until six, when the sun rose.

He smiled. “Sure, buddy.”

“Really? Aw, thanks, Magnus,” Toki declared, yanking Magnus into a tight hug before scrambling up and rolling his sleeping bag up.

Oh, they’re doing this now, Magnus thought, and laughed a little as he brought himself up and mimicked Toki’s actions.

Toki stopped. “Oh, go looks around the apartments and makes sure there ams nothing left. I’ll puts these sleepinks bags in the car, okays?”

“Sure thing.”

Magnus left the room, checked the kitchen and found it mostly bare, save for some plastic utensils he saw no reason to save. Magnus slid past Toki once more, entered the hallway and checked the empty bedroom, but remembered their toothbrushes, towels and shampoo resting in the bathroom. He picked the few things up, and returned to the living room. When he arrived, Magnus saw Toki standing amongst the rolled bags, and holding something in his arms.

Toki fidgeted in place, legs giving a light tremble as he stretched his arms out, smiling wide and offering a large, colorful folder to Magnus. He approached cautiously, taking the heavy folder in his hands. The cover had a picture of him kissing a surprised Toki on the cheek displayed at its center, and beneath it, the year 2014, followed by a single dash.

“What’s this?”

“Ams a scrapbook,” Toki answered right as Magnus lifted the heavy cover and was greeted with a less than flattering picture of him standing defensively in front of a hospital. Another page reviewed a picture of him asleep on the couch. Another, with him and Toki posed in front of some unlucky soul they picked a fight with.

Magnus’ eyes went dry as he flipped through the pages, each one revealing some past venture he and Toki had done, no matter small and insignificant. A picture of him and Toki in the limo, the very first time he succumbed to forming ridiculous poses with the man. There was him and Toki at the gate to Knott’s, where Toki convinced him to try one of the faster coasters.

“Was gonna surprise yous when we gots to our new homes, but–”

“This is when you took me to the arboretum.” Magnus hand settled on a less than enthused version of him, standing near a lake covered in lily pads. His eyes turned irritable, and when Magnus blinked, felt tears start to form at the edges.

Toki appeared on his side. A hand rested on his back, while Toki reached with his other, and flipped yet another page. “And this ams when I tooks you to the musicks festivals with all them old bands. And this ones I tooks two months laters, when I gots permission to takes you abroad for the first times! Look how happy you ams in these pictures compared to the first ones, Magnus!”

Toki looked up at him and grinned, and when Magnus saw it, nearly dropped the scrapbook. Toki stepped in front of him, catching it, but once he had Magnus swooped in and pulled the man into a hug.

“I love you, man.” Magnus sniffed. His hand cupped the back of Toki’s head, fingers lacing through soft hair. The book pressed against this chest, but he didn’t care. He ignored the discomfort it caused, and held on tightly to Toki. “I love you so much. Thanks… for everything.”

“Ams no problems, Magnus,” Toki said, parting from him to readjust the book and help Magnus wipe away the few tears that had sprung from him. He handed the scrapbook to Magnus once he had calmed, and with a steady smile, said, “Helps me fill the rest of this books, okays? We’ve beens dating for a whiles, but ams still only halfways filled.”

Magnus provided a hasty nod, then, as Toki was about to wipe his face, pulled out his phone. With a shaking hand, he raised it up. “Let’s start right now,” he declared, watching Toki’s eyes widen and fill with pink. Magnus stretched out an arm, calling Toki to stand beside him. He raised the phone up, and the two could see how terrible they appeared in their mirrored reflections, eyes red and watery, and tips of the noses pink, but Magnus held the phone above them, keeping it as still as he could while Toki huddled close and forced the cheekiest smile he could manage without crying.

“Say _cheese_.” The phone flashed, and Magnus retracted his arm.

Toki hovered over the small screen. “We looks…” His fingers pressed against the screen, enlarging the photo and revealing their strained, yet amiable expressions. _“Greats.”_

“Ready to start another adventure, buddy?” Magnus slapped a hand on top of Toki’s broad shoulder.

Beaming, Toki bobbed his head. “Sure things, Magnus.”

Toki grabbed the two rolled up sleeping bags. Magnus hurriedly stowed their scrapbook away, fixing it between a pair of jeans and a shirt, and reminded himself to look through it later, once it was toki’s turn to drive. He picked up both backpacks, swinging one over each shoulder before following Toki, who stopped to hold the door open with a foot. He reached the archway, paused, then turned around one final time to stare at the emptied apartment. Someone reached for the light and hit the switch. The door slowed to a shut as the two exited the apartment, neither paying any mind to the plastic stars settled across the manmade sky giving off a faint, but promising glow.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos appreciated. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading.


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